Duran Duran have recently had something of a revival. They are namechecked by all the coolest new bands, such as the Killers and the Bravery (who have gone a step further and completely ripped off the Duran Duran sound - their single 'An Honest Mistake' for a virtual re-write of 'Planet Earth', surely). The voguish trend for boys in make-up, smart suits playing tunes of keyboards must have Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes and the three unrelated Taylor's thinking all their Christmases have come at once. On the other hand, Duran Duran have always had unimpeachably cool influences. Named after a character from the cult sci-fi flick 'Barbarella' and drawing from influences such as Bowie, Roxy Music, Blondie, Chic and the punk movement, how could you not love a band with such good taste? But the thing about Duran Duran, for all the good singles, is that they're nowhere near as important as they think they are. For a fairly inconsequential pop band they seem to have ideas above their station as some kind of influence as industry movers and shakers. Sadly, the truth is that Duran Duran will always be inferior to their idols, and equally as inferior to the bands by whom they are now namechecked.

And so to 'Astronaut', Duran Duran's most recent release. The cover suggests an album that will be state-of-the-art, hi-tech, modern, rooted in the future, a fusion of pink and black while the five band members, immaculately groomed look out at you like creatures from an era too trendy, too fashionable for mortal humans. However, the album itself is not so modern. While bands like the Bravery rip off the band wholesale, Duran Duran could have kick-started their career with the quirky but danceable (and, importantly, radio-friendly) electronica of the early 80's heyday, but instead they release a record which is noteworthy only for its mediocrity.

The clunky, hopeless 'Bedroom Toys' is undoubtedly one of the album's lowest lows. You can hear you gut wrench with embarrassment as Simon Le Bon raps: "I been around the world/I seen a lot of things/That make your chicken curl/You're squeezing like boys and teasing like girls…". Whoever told the band that a rap song would be a good idea? It must surely be the same person who suggested the idea to Blondie on their most recent album, another horrendous embarrassment. In their search for modernity and the contemporary, Duran Duran have only embarrassed themselves. Le Bon sounds pervy and charmless, something he never did on 'Rio', surely? And Le Bon has never been the finest lyricist in the world (take, for example, the immortal line "You're about as easy as a nuclear war" from 'Is There Something I Should Know?'), but on material like this, it sounds like he should go back to yachting. See 'What Happens Tomorrow' as another example of extremely dodgy lyrics: "Child, don't you worry /It's enough you're growing up in such a hurry /Brings you down the news they sell you/To put in your mind that all mankind is a failure". Duran Duran seemingly took a walk right through Cliché City, picking up every bad metaphor, pun and bad rhyme along their way.

The album also suffers from extreme overproduction. This has been a theme of Duran Duran's albums ever since they first started out. Indeed, it would be hard to pick a Duran Duran album that one could say is really, really good ('Rio' comes the closest), and that is why the band are a much better singles band than a serious album act. The album seems like its been polished to within an inch of its life by big-name producers such as Dallas Austin (Gwen Stefani, TLC) and Don Gilmore (Good Charlotte, Linkin Park). This has seemingly sucked out the thrill and charisma of the band and their effortlessly cool 80's sound. As a result, the album sounds so frustratingly dull that you wonder why they bothered. They really could have gathered some momentum and been worshipped as gods had they released an album which harkened back to their classic sound, which is making them so revered at the moment. Instead, they've blown it.