12 May 1984
I have a lot of time for Duran Duran, and I think most ’80s kids and pop fans do too. At their best they made brilliant singles like ‘Planet Earth’, ‘Girls On Film’, ‘Hungry Like The Wolf’, ‘Notorious’, and ‘A View To A Kill’: over the top and fairly daft, for sure, but fizzing with excitement and catchiness. There’s plenty of ‘at their worst’, of course, which gets magnified by a steel-plated, tin-eared self-confidence-slash-arrogance that understandably rubs people up the wrong way. Still, on balance Duran Duran are a force for good, not evil.
‘The Reflex’ isn’t quite Duran at their best but is still a fine slice of ’80s chart action. A listen to the original album version shows it to be, aside from that gargantuan chorus, a slightly watery affair that puts the spotlight on lyrics which are beyond sense and nonsense; impeccable post-modernism, maybe, but a bit wearying in a pop song. What we get here at number one in the singles chart is a remix by Nile Rodgers, who pulls out some hooks to the start, gives the whole thing a bit more oomph and urgency, and helps us appreciate those lyrics from a safer distance. It works, and ‘The Reflex’ the single is hugely enjoyable.
