#21

Top video just needs Ian MacKaye singing over it. Perfect.

#22

That was as disturbing as it was interesting.

I tried listening to the album but had to nope out after 3 songs. Enjoy your chat.

#23

The first or second video? Or both??

#24

The second. He’s so… pleased with himself :smiley:

#25

Yeah, it’s a bit Partridge as well isn’t it?

1 Like
#26

The Fans used to sing a version of the song too

#27

good album, 7.

#28

It turns out I have. They played it every week at the 80s night at the Afterdark that used to play the same songs every week.

#29

I was correct in suggesting I’d like this, but, hot take incoming: I’d like a little less of the bass.

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#30

The first album I ever bought!

It’ll probably get a pumelling in here, but I think it’s a pretty much perfect 80s pop album. All killer and no filler :wink: Great hooks in every song, excellent production and great musicianship.
Despite them being so big in the 80s, I don’t think they get the respect they earned.

Went for Save A Prayer as my favourite track, but could have been any of Hungry Like The Wolf, New Religion, The Chauffeur or Rio.

1 Like
#31

Fascinating stuff.

I don’t think playing drums like that is too hard if you’re a good player. I mean some drummers are just absolute metronomes and some are sort of loose in my experience. I had a sort of brief try playing along to it and I’m not that great but equally I could see how I could get into a sort of groove because it’s also quite a static pattern both times.

@Scott_Chegg how easy do you think playing those Rio drums is? I mean I’m sure you could do it but you’re really good.

#32

Somehow I have only just learned this about the classic Duran Duran line-up:

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Three out of five had the last name Taylor and none of them were related.

WTAF lads?

2 Likes
#33

Anyway, I recall thinking Duran Duran weren’t much good aside from the singles. But I do enjoy this. It’s not great for me I guess because it doesn’t quite elevate. I really like how driving it is though, lots of very tight, fast drumming and the production is a lot better than I remembered. However, there’s still something sort of ‘tinny’ about it a lot.

John Taylor can certainly play bass but there’s something about the tone that can get a bit much for me. His style is very very Macca and I’m a big Beatles fan but even Paul knows when to just sit back a bit but also his bass tone is always quite bassy. Here I found myself just starting to hear JT’s bass more than anything else in the mix: guitars and keyboards are all mixed quite high and slight sounding.

I think I’ll give them a 7 for Rio because I think there’s some great song work in here and ideas and basically for the good times of the singles which are all very strong.

#34

I’ve had a go playing along to it and I think it sounds alright while I’m playing (for the 30 seconds I can keep it going) but then I play it back and the hi hats are all over the place. I do only have an electronic kit though, maybe it’s a bit easier on an acoustic kit. It’s the precision of the hi hats that gets me, it sounds like a drum machine

1 Like
#35

Oh yeah fair enough. I was just tapping on the practice pad but equally I know I can’t do it that precise

#36

Many memories just came flooding back reading that word, mostly of hearing Hungry Like the Wolf there. Good song. Good club night, I think. I like that their (and the UK’s longest running, so they claim) 80’s night started in 1991 or something.

#37

This drummer’s answer:

It’s easy and sounds good if you know what you’re doing. Emphasise the first of each group of 4 semiquavers (in your playing, not necessarily in volume), and build your groove around that. All the BD and snares fall with the right hand, so it’s easy to get lost in it and keep it steady. You end up playing a sort of cycle of four with your hands, meaning you can concentrate on everything else.

Here’s a scrappy as hell video of me playing something much faster, which is a fun example of the music being too fast for me to concentrate on the above. We’d never rehearsed it this fast, hence my surprise when it kicked off and inability to play it well :expressionless:

edit: we borrowed that xylo player from the marines - he was ridiculous and a lovely guy.

2 Likes
#38

As another drummer, I agree with this. It’s pretty tough at first because when you first start learning drums you’re only ever playing on hand on the hi-hat and one on the snare, but once you practice it enough it’s quite easy and sounds great.

Also want to say lots of 80s bands used this technique so it’s quite prevalent (Stephen Morris from New Order and Joy Division, Larry Mullen Jr from U2). Also, the fills are quite simple on the Rio track (just the odd snare pattern). Not to take anything away from the sound of the song.

The bass on the other hand…any bassists out there?

1 Like
#39

What do you mean by this, that the snare strikes are done with the right hand? When I’ve tried this I’ve found it a lot easier to strike the snare with the left hand. Does this mean I’m left handed drummer? :thinking:

#40

Best £1 used record I’ve ever bought. Doesn’t mean enough to me to be a 10, but there’s a ton of bangers to enjoy. 9.