I haven't posted here in ages, I know. The truth is I've been busy working on my new website, Deena Roth Photography. However, I am so excited about Duran Duran's new album, I had to share it here!
Needless to say, I can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy of Duran Duran's Paper Gods on Friday! Although the first five released tracks have been on constant replay around here for some time, now that I've heard the album in its entirety, I can say that I'm officially blown away. Since I found out that the album was streaming on Soundcloud yesterday, it has been my soundtrack whilst photo editing, so I've listened to it at least half a dozen times. It's an eclectic mix of sheer brilliance that was definitely worth the wait.
More than ever, I am dying to see Duranlive again, but sadly I will need to start getting more photo contracts and also find a source of steady income (something I have been working on vigorously for the last year with no luck) before I can afford to attend any shows. In the meantime, I will continue to jam to this genius album and live vicariously through my friends who are lucky enough to attend shows. xoxo
Anyone who really knows me knows that every day is Duran Duran Appreciation Day to me. However, this year I'm doing something extra special in honour of my favourite band of all time...
In less than a week, I will be graduating from an intensive one-year Professional Photography program at Inter-Dec College. My final project -- for my Photoshop class -- is a series of three photos, paying homage to the women of Duran Duran videos of the Rio era. Last week, I shot The Chauffeur. Yesterday, I shot Hungry Like The Wolf and today, I'm shooting Rio.
Obviously, being a struggling artist/poor student, I couldn't afford to fly to London, Sri Lanka and Antigua. So, The Chauffeur was shot in the parking garage at my school in Montreal, Quebec and Hungry Like The Wolf on Mount Royal, also in Montreal. Today, I'm heading to Archambault Lake in St.Donat, Quebec where my uncle has a small sailboat that will substitute for the Eilean. I couldn't think of a better way to spend DDAD 2014!
I'd like to thank the talented models, makeup artists and hairstylists who helped make this dream become a reality. I have spent several weeks organising my teams, scouting locations and finding the right wardrobe and props to pull these shoots off. Of course, I've also been working on projects for all my other classes as well as building my portfolio and mounting an exhibit with my classmates that will take place on August 15th, 2014.
My only hope is that Duran Duran know just how much they are appreciated by an up and coming photographer in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. For over thirty years, they have inspired me and in all honesty, it was because of them that I found the courage to end a 15 year teaching career and follow my passions by embarking an a whole new career path. So, thank you Duran Duran.
Alfred Stieglitz (born 1864 in Hoboken, NJ)
(died 1946 in New York, New York)
Alfred Stieglitz was a highly influential figure in the arts at the dawning of the twentieth century, and a vastly significant spokesperson for modern culture. He was a principal advocate of Modernism and arguably had more of an impact on photography than any other artist of his time. His work represents his vision for the future of photography as an art form at the turn of the twentieth century. Through photography, he saw a new vision for a modern world. He made it his life's ambition to teach people how to see. He pushed the technical limitations of photography, often using weather to his advantage in order to create a certain mood or atmosphere. For instance, he spent three hours standing in a blizzard in order to achieve the desired soft-lens effect of one of his most famous photographs, Winter - Fifth Avenue.
Stieglitz was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, in 1864, but his family moved back to Germany in 1881, where he attended school and subsequently first picked up a camera. He returned to the United States in 1890, committed to proving that photography was a medium as relevant as painting or sculpture as a means of artistic expression. He founded Photo-Secession, a prominent group of American photographers who fought to have photography acknowledged as an art form and led the Pictorialist Movement, which promoted the artistic legitimacy of photography in the United States.
Alfred Stieglitz is an inspiration, not only because of his talent and his impressive body of work, but because of his dedication to and advocacy for the medium of photography. His intense passion serves as motivation for me to push the boundaries. I am grateful -- as all photographers should be -- for Alfred Stieglitz.
"There are many schools of painting. Why should there not be many schools of photographic art? There is hardly a right and a wrong in these matters, but there is truth, and that should form the basis of all works of art."
“The camera was waiting for me by predestination and I took to it as a musician takes to the piano or a painter to the canvas. I went to photography really a free soul – and loved it at first sight with a great passion.”
Bill Brandt (born Hermann Wilhelm Brandt, 1904, Hamburg, Germany) (died 1983, London, England)
Although born in Germany, Bill Brandt -- born Hermann Wilhelm Brandt to a British father and German mother -- is considered the quintessential British photographer. He captured all aspects of British life -- from dingy mining communities to high society -- like no other in the twentieth century. In his work, you find the perfect balance of powerful social commentary and ingenious artistic style.
He spent a considerable amount of time being treated for tuberculosis in a Swiss sanatorium, where he first showed an interest in photography. He began his career as a photographer on a 1926 trip to Vienna, where he ended up working and living for the next three years. In 1929 he left Vienna for Paris, where he spent three months working as a studio assistant to surrealist painter and photographer Man Ray. Evidently, he learnt something from the master, because a hint of the surreal permeates so much of his work. In 1932, he moved to London, where he began his lifelong love affair with England.
It is Brandt's combination of poetic imagery and documentary photography that inspires me. Through his lens, he inspires us all to view the world around us with “a sense of wonder.” His work resonates with me deeply and although I would never attempt to replicate his style, he inspires me to create a style of my own.
"A feeling for composition is a great asset. I think it is very much a matter of instinct. It can perhaps be developed, but I doubt it can be learned. However, to achieve his best work, the young photographer must discover what really excites him visually. He must discover his own world."
"It is the gift of seeing the life around them clearly and vividly, as something that is exciting in its own right. It is an innate gift, varying in intensity with the individual's temperament and environment."
Henri Cartier-Bresson (born 1908 in Chanteloup-en-Brie, France) (died 2004 in Montjustin, France)
Henri Cartier-Bresson is considered the pioneer of photojournalism and was regarded as a leading creative force of his time. He coined the term 'the decisive moment' -- that fleeting moment of inspiration that a photographer has to capture an instant in time. His passion and wanderlust took him to the four corners of the earth, where he documented both the great suffering and great joy of humanity. His skill and perseverance helped establish photojournalism as an art form.
Throughout his childhood, Cartier-Bresson showed a keen interest in the arts. As a young adult, he went on to study painting and literature at Cambridge University, England, which is also where he was introduced to photography. After his studies, he acquired a hand-held Leica camera and photography became his new passion. In 1935, Cartier-Bresson abandoned photography and worked as an assistant to prominent French filmmaker Jean Renoir. He collaborated with the director on several films, including the renowned La règle du jeu (1939). Later, Cartier-Bresson served in the French army and was taken prisoner by the Germans in 1940. After several failed attempts, he finally escaped in 1943 and promptly returned to his photography and film work. He was one of the founders of Magnum Photos, which remains, to this day, one of the leading photo agencies in the world.
I am profoundly inspired, not only by the humanity shown in Cartier-Bresson's work, but by his precise, geometric framing and his remarkable sense of timing. I aspire to capture moments the way he did and that will take an awful lot of practice, training and courage on my part. Believe me when I say that I am up for the challenge!
'"For me the camera is a sketch book, an instrument of intuition and spontaneity, the master of the instant which, in visual terms, questions and decides simultaneously. It is by economy of means that one arrives at simplicity of expression."
Diane Arbus (born 1923 in New York, New York ) (died 1971 in New York, New York)
Diane Arbus is considered one of the most influential photographers of the twentieth century. She is best remembered for her distinct style and passionate dedication to her unique subjects -- marginalized groups and subcultures -- who were generally overlooked by mainstream society. Her work has remained, to this day, highly controversial. Although some criticise her for being a voyeur, others see her as a philanthropist who shed light on the lives of people who most would turn a blind eye to. Personally, I see her as an extremely courageous, creative genius.
She began her career as a fashion photographer, but later turned to freelance work. She studied under renowned photographer Lisette Model, from whom she learnt her most valuable lessons -- to have confidence in her talent and not to let fear stand in the way of her artistic integrity. Throughout her career, Arbus viewed each photography project as an adventure and viewed the resulting photographs themselves as a sort of recompense for the adventure. Sadly, after battling years of depression, she took her own life in 1971, at the age of 48.
It is my own fear of approaching strangers that attracted me to Diane Arbus's work. Although an extrovert by nature, I am hesitant to take photographs of people I do not know. This is an apprehension I wish to overcome and there are myriad lessons to be learnt from Diane Arbus in this area. I was astonished to learn that she often feared her subjects until she got to know them -- a fact that has deeply inspired me to face my own fears.
Through his photography, Hiromi Tsuchida explores what it means to be Japanese. Throughout his career, he has documented various aspects of Japanese life, including an examination of the role of traditional Japanese customs and rituals in the face of modernization -- Zokushin, Gods of the Earth (1969-1975), an analysis of the evolution of the crowd in Japanese society -- Counting Grains of Sand and New Counting Grains of Sand (1975-1989) and a profound exploration of the impact of the bombing at Hiroshima -- Hiroshima 1975-1978 (1978), Hiroshima (1985), Hiroshima Collection (1995) and Hiroshima Monument II (1995). I believe that his work is both of great artistic and sociological value. He earned a degree in engineering at Fukui University before enrolling at the Tokyo College of Photography, where he later became a lecturer (1972) and professor (1993). He began his career as a commercial photographer after graduating in 1966, but soon turned to more meaningful work as he embarked upon a new path and became a freelance photographer in 1971. His first solo exhibit, at the Ginza Nikon Salon, was called Jihei kukan (Autistic Space) (1971) and was an introspective look at Japanese culture. This exhibit paved the way for future projects that would delve deeper into Japanese consciousness.
I was drawn to Hiromi Tsuchida because of my strong affinity for Japan. I have always been fascinated by Japanese culture. I lived in the rural town of Nakatsu in the Oita Prefecture from February 2004 to August 2005 and it was an experience I will never forget. I established friendships with people who are in my life to this day. I have been fortunate enough to take part in Japanese traditions and ceremonies both whilst living there and when visiting Japan in 2007, twice in 2008 and again in 2012. I have visited both the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum and what I saw there will remain with me forever. Japan will always hold a special place in my heart and I hope to return someday.
“I have been wandering these past several years in mountains, villages, towns and cities in pursuit, for the most part, of festivals and religious space.,' he writes. 'My wandering was not in response to a definite plan, in fact it was quite arbitrary. I suppose what I was trying to do was to find myself again as a Japanese.”
When I mentioned to a dear friend of mine that I was doing a research assignment on a photographer of my choice, she asked me if I had ever heard of Darcy Padilla. She suggested that I look into The Julie Project. I was not prepared for what a profound effect it would have on me. Julie’s story will stay with me for a long time. Personally, I could ever do work like this, but I have a deep sense of admiration for those photojournalists who delve into the darker side of life. These are stories that must be told. These are stories that are happening not only in distant lands, but in our own backyards. I am grateful to my friend – and to Darcy Padilla, of course – for sharing Julie’s story with me. I strongly urge you to discover Julie’s story.
Darcy Padilla is a San Francisco-based photographer, who has won worldwide recognition with her poignant documentary work. She won a place at the World Press Photo exhibit in 2011 and again in 2012. She has also won several other awards including the W. Eugene Smith Award for Humanistic Photography, the Alexia Foundation for World Peace and the Professional Grant and the Getty Images Grant for Editorial Photography.
Her work has been published in The New York Times, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone, Newsweek, amongst others. She is a visiting faculty member at the San Francisco Art Institute. She has offered lectures and workshops in the US and in Europe.
She is best known for The Julie Project, a heart-wrenching, 18-year project in which she chronicled the life and death of Julie Baird, a drug addict afflicted with AIDS, who was born into poverty, struggled with myriad issues including abusive relationships and losing five of her six children to child protective services.
“While I juggle several passions at once, my enduring study has been the life of one woman I met in the Tenderloin 17 years ago. This project is one that has set a direction for my approach to photography.”
She is currently working on a follow-up project called Everything is Going To Be OK, which follows the lives of Jason and Elyssa, the boyfriend and daughter that Julie left behind. She is also working on a documentary film of Julie and Jason’s lives, which she started filming in 2005. I look forward to both of these projects. Someday, I would love attend one of her workshops or lectures.
Things are going to get very hectic, very soon. The summer is coming to an end and in less than a week, I will be starting my full-time studies in Professional Photography at Inter-Dec College. Tomorrow, I'll be going in for orientation, where I will get my class schedule, obtain my Student ID, get a tour of the campus and be assigned a locker. It's been 12 years since I last pursued full-time studies. I graduated from Concordia University with a Bachelor of Arts in 2001. Oh, and I haven't had a locker since high school.
Rue Saint-Denis, Montreal
Another sign the summer is coming to an end is the return of the annual Montreal World Film Festival. Last Saturday, I saw a profoundly beautiful and touching Japanese film called Case of Kyoko, Case of Shuichi. Tomorrow night, I'll be seeing Dark Blood, the film that the remarkably talented River Phoenix was working on when he sadly passed away. On Saturday night, I'll be seeing a French film called La Vie Domestique. On Sunday, I'll be seeing an Italian film called A Five Star Life. Finally, on Monday, I'll be seeing an Australian/French film called Adore. I love attending the World Film Fest, as it's an opportunity to see films from across the globe. It's also an opportunity to meet some extremely interesting people -- patrons, filmmakers and actors alike.
In addition to attending the Film Fest, I will be going to see my lovely niece Liana in Last One Standing's production of The House of Yes, in which she will be playing the role of Lesly. I'm very proud of my niece and always enjoy seeing her on the stage. This Saturday also happens to be her 22nd birthday, so she's very excited!
In related news, Liana will be studying Art History at my Alma Mater -- Concordia University -- beginning this autumn. So, it looks like I'm not the only one who's going back to school! The two of us are looking forward to meeting up for coffee between classes, as our school campuses are very close.
Kampai!
In other news, last week, I was delighted to spend time with my dear friends Mike & Miyuki and their three-year old son, Koa, who were visiting from Japan. I hadn't seen them since 2010 -- when Koa was just a few months old -- and it was so great catching up with them after all this time, but it was also a tad bittersweet. Unfortunately, all of my closest friends live far away. I'm not complaining, though. I am so grateful to have the most incredible friends a girl could ask for. Perhaps someday -- when I'm a famous photographer -- I'll be able to afford to take all my closest friends on a spectacular holiday. My first choice of destination is... Sri Lanka. I hope you're all okay with that.
It's been over a year since my last blog entry. I could say that I've been busy with other things, which I have, but that's no excuse, is it? Still, it's my excuse and I'm sticking with it! Haha! In any case, I'm making a conscious effort to be more consistent and prolific starting NOW!
Simon Le Bon's Save A Prayer pick!
Now, I will pick up where I left off. I can't begin to describe what an extraordinary experience the Great American Duranadventure was. There were lots of highs -- like catching Simon Le Bon's guitar pick! -- and also lows -- Nick Rhodes became very ill, so they had to cancel the last six shows of the tour, including the Chicago show I had tickets to -- but I still got to see three unforgettable shows, explore places I had never been to before, and most importantly, I got to spend time with my friends. As the band are working on their 14th studio album, I find myself dreaming of my next Duranadventure. Who knows where it will take me? One thing is for certain, Duran Duran remain my perpetual source of inspiration, and the incredible friendships I am so grateful to have built through them continue to grow. You can see all the photos from my adventures here: Memphis, Biloxi, New Orleans, New England and Chicago.
Almost immediately after returning from my travels, I started a new job as an Early Childhood Educator at Ecole Montessori International. The job took up a lot of my energy, and taught me a lot of valuable lessons. My contract ended at the end of June and I will not be returning next year. But... that's a whole other story.
Moz performing at Terminal 5
The autumn brought even more adventure! In October of last year, I had the opportunity to fly to New York for the weekend -- where I was fortunate enough to see Morrissey in concert once again -- and meet up with two of my dear Duranie friends. It had been years since I'd been to New York and although it was a whirlwind trip, it was an unforgettable one. The only bit I didn't like was when I had to bid my friends farewell. I had to get back to work, but they stayed on for John Talylor's In The Pleasure Groove book reading and signing.
Chatting with the lovely John Taylor
A short while after that trip, I found out that John would be doing a book reading and signing in Toronto. I managed to get some time off work and booked a last-minute flight and hotel. I got to meet three of my fellow-Canadian Duranie friends at the event, and I made some new friends, too. As luck would have it, my plane landed just a couple of hours before John's, so I greeted him with flowers at Pearson International Airport. I have a very dear friend to thank for that information! You know who you are...
Unfortunately, I was so nervous that I forgot to ask for a photo, even though I was holding my camera in my sweaty palm. At least I found the courage to speak to him this time, unlike at Incheon International Airport in Korea, a surreal experience that I never blogged about... but I should. In fact, I will! I also plan on blogging about the Great American Duranadventure in more detail. I realise it's been over a year, but it's still very fresh in my mind and this stuff has got to be documented! But I digress... John was extremely gracious, both at the airport and at the book signing. He even remembered where I was from and wished me a safe flight back to Montreal! What a sweetheart. Click here to see all my photos from this extraordinary experience.
Gangwa Island, South Korea, 2008
Gondolas, Venice, Italy, 1993
In other news, this September, I will be embarking upon an entirely different sort of adventure. I'm going back to school! After close to fifteen years in the teaching field, I have decided to pursue a lifelong passion and will be studying Professional Photography at Inter-Dec College. I have a lot to learn, but in the meantime, I have been trying to build a name for myself online. You can visit my website here: Beautiful Colours. And yes, the name I chose happens to be a song by Duran Duran. No big surprise there. I would be profoundly grateful if you'd take the time to check out my Facebook Page and click "like" if you are so inclined. I am both nervous and excited about starting school in a matter of weeks. The support I have received thus far from my friends as well as from fellow artists is overwhelming.
Please stay tuned. I promise not to wait a year before my next blog entry. ♥
They say that you never forget your first love. Well, you could say that my first love was Duran Duran. They have had more of an impact on my life than any other band ever has and that's saying a lot, because I've listened to and admired an eclectic and vast mix of musical artists over the years, but to this day, the only band that I have ever truly idolised is Duran Duran.
I was born in 1970 and grew up in the city of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. When I was 12, we moved to the suburbs and I started high school. At first, I had high hopes, but Grade 7 ended up being a very difficult year. Not only was I coping with my parents’ separation and trying to fit in at a new school, but it was also the year that I discovered just how cruel teenage girls could be. Basically, my first year of high school ended with me in tears, begging my mother to change schools. Hesitantly, she agreed and for me, it was a fresh start and also the beginning of a new chapter in my life. The year was 1983, I was 13 years old and suddenly, the soundtrack of my life changed dramatically. Duran Duran came into my life when I needed them most.
Initially, I was drawn to their music. Then, I was captivated by their videos. Of course, hormonal teen that I was, I couldn’t help but notice their incredibly good looks but, it was their fascinating personalities that really got my attention. The more I learned about Duran Duran, the more I could relate to them. My whole life, I had felt like I was different and here were these five handsome lads, telling me that it was okay. Moreover, I found out that I wasn’t alone. Making friends at my new school was easy now that I had Duran Duran on my side.
I saved my allowance and babysitting money and headed to the unchartered territory of the local record store. I was pleasantly surprised to find that they had already released not one, but two albums: the ground-breaking, self-titled debut Duran Duran (1981) and the brilliant Rio (1982). I bought them both, took them home and revelled in their magic. A few months after my obsession began; they released their third album, the atmospheric Seven and the Ragged Tiger (1983). That wasn’t enough for me, though. I was insatiable. I spent my weekends hunting down rare import singles and 12” long-versions. They had opened a portal to a world that I longed to embrace; a world where riveting melodies collided with surrealist lyrics, a world of boundless joy that soothed my teenage soul.
I watched every video show televised in Canada: Video Hits, Good Rockin' Tonite, Friday Night Videos, praying that the Fab Five would make an appearance. I anxiously awaited each new issue of BOP!, Tiger Beat, Teen Beat, Smash Hits, etc. I bought every book or fanzine on Duran Duran that I could find. My bedroom walls (including the ceiling) were adorned with Duran Duran posters. I was the only one of my friends to own Sing Blue Silver & Arena and I watched them over and over. I wrote fan-fiction (back in the days when I didn’t even know it was called fan-fiction) about them that was so popular at my high school that I had to make loads of photocopies every time I wrote a new chapter. Kids who I didn’t even know would approach me in the hall to ask when the next chapter would be out.
Over the next few years, they continued to influence me in many ways. I coloured my hair because of them, wore jazz shoes, emulated Simon Le Bon’s dance moves and generally took a keen interest in anything they talked about or recommended. For instance, I doubt that I would have ever watched the sci-fi cult classic Barbarella (1968) if it weren’t for Duran Duran. I read Voltaire because of the song Last Chance on the Stairway. I discovered the world of Andy Warhol because of Nick Rhodes.
Through Duran Duran, I became a scholar of pop-culture and learned all that I could about the musical artists and the movements that had inspired them to create their unique sound. Let’s face it; I was born in 1970, so I was a little kid when movements like Glam-Rock, Disco and Punk happened, but Duran Duran indirectly turned me on to bands from all of those eras. Moreover, as a teen in the 1980s, I became well-versed in the world of New Wave music and listened to a lot of Duran Duran’s contemporaries such as Japan, Aztec Camera, Echo & the Bunnymen, OMD, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Nik Kershaw, The Psychedelic Furs and Depeche Mode, just to name a few. Nonetheless, I wasn’t nearly as fanatical about any of them as I was about Duran Duran and anybody who knew me as a teen could certainly vouch for that!
I truly believe that I would not be the person that I am today if it weren’t for them. If it hadn't been for Duran Duran, would I have learned to express myself through clothing and attitude and delved into the world of youth subcultures? Would I have developed such a passion for music? Would I have become an avid reader of thought-provoking literature? Would I have started keeping a journal, writing poetry and short stories? Would I have started going to museums and art galleries on a regular basis while most other teenagers were hanging out at the mall? Would I have attended drama school? Would I have taken singing lessons? Would I have had the courage to travel on my own and to live abroad? The list of ways that they changed my life is endless and the answer to all of these questions is a resounding NO!
When drummer Roger Taylor and guitarist Andy Taylor left the band in 1986, I was devastated. I must admit that shortly after Notorious (1986) was released I took a break from Duran Duran and went through a deep, dark and rather depressing Goth phase. I mostly listened to The Cure, Bauhaus, The Smiths, Joy Division, and dressed in black every day and hid from the sun and read gothic novels and did seriously strange things to my hair and was generally gloomy. When I was 17, I went through a Mod phase that lasted until I was in my early-20s. I have fond memories of those phases in my life and I believe that I had to go down those roads in order to grow as an individual. All of these things are a part of who I am, but it all started with Duran Duran.
In retrospect, although I have been inspired by many other musical artists, I can honestly say that the pure joy that Duran Duran bring to my life is something that I have never been able to truly find elsewhere. In that way, just like their music and their five distinct personalities, they are, and always have been unique. Furthermore, I often think that I would have never found the inspiration or the courage to become part of those youth subcultures had it not been for Duran Duran. I never stopped listening to their music and long after the posters came down, the lessons Duran Duran taught me have lingered. To this day, I am unafraid to always be myself. I have led a rather unconventional life and refuse to be bound by the rules of society.
Although the obsession subsided somewhat in 1986, I continued to follow Duran Duran’s career over the years. I saw them in concert for the first time in 1987, after Roger & Andy had left. They were touring with David Bowie on the Glass Spider Tour. I was thrilled to finally get to see them, as I’d missed my chance when they came to Montreal in 1984 on the Sing Blue Silver Tour. I’ve watched Sing Blue Silver so many times that it almost feels like I was there, but sadly, I wasn’t. It’s a long story. Unfortunately, due to the fact that I never seemed to be in the right place at the right time, I didn’t get to see them again until 2008, on the Red Carpet Massacre Tour, when they came to Seoul, South Korea, where I was living at the time. I got to see them again in Seoul in March of this year and had the honour and privilege of writing about that incredible experience here: DURANASTY.COM.
At the beginning of the new millennium, when the original five members announced that were getting back together, I was totally stoked. I absolutely loved the album Astronaut (2004) which was the only album that they released as the reformed original five. This was my chance to finally see the original line-up that had been such a huge part of my formative years! I was living in Japan in 2005 and I bought VIP tickets to their show in Fukuoka. Sadly, Roger Taylor injured his foot and the Japanese tour was cancelled. Needless to say, I was thoroughly gutted.
Fast forward to 2011… Duran Duran re-entered my life at a time when, once again, I needed them most. It wasn’t the first time that I took out my Duran Duran vinyl collection (of course, I own their entire discography on CD and have uploaded everything to iTunes, but there's nothing like the sound of vinyl) and gave it a spin. It wasn't the first time that I took the old videos off the shelf and watched them. It wasn't the first time that I delved into all the old books and posters and clippings. The simple fact that I've kept all of these things over the years says a lot about how much I will always cherish this band. They’re not just a band; they’re like old friends who are always there for you when you need them the most. I was inspired by their latest album, All You Need is Now, because they have truly returned to their roots with this one and it reminded me how much I love them.
What they’ve accomplished with All You Need is Now (2011) is nothing short of astonishing. They've managed to replicate the magic of their early sound yet produce an album that is extremely relevant and fresh. Not to mention, the message behind the title track resonates deeply with me. The last few years of my life have been difficult: failed relationships, an ailing father, difficult work situations, moving around from place to place, in some ways feeling just as lost as I did when I was a teen… none of it matters. All that matters is NOW and what you do with the moment that you are in. That being said, on April 26th, 2011, I got to see Duran Duran live at a very intimate venue in Montreal during their
All You Need is Now promotional tour. Hearing them perform the new songs live, alongside their classics, was an experience that I can only describe as magical. It was an evening I will never forget.
After that show, I re-activated my long dormant Twitter account and started following Simon Le Bon and John Taylor. I can’t begin to explain the thrill of being in (kind of) direct contact with these men who have had such a profound impact on my life. My fascination with Simon, the charismatic frontman who has always been my favourite member, is just as strong now as it was almost 30 years ago. I’ve been bitten by the Duran Duran bug all over again and this time, it’s for good! My life is simply better with them in it. Not only have I re-connected with my favourite band, but I have connected with so many wonderful Duranies in the last year and a half. They have become an integral part of my life and I am grateful to have made such incredible friends. Their love and support means the world to me. I can't believe that I am finally going to get to meet some of my new friends very soon...
A few months before leaving Korea, I found out that Duran Duran would be returning to North America shortly after my planned return. I decided that I was going to attend as many shows as possible. I am going to four shows on this last leg of the All You Need is Now Tour, will be visiting seven American cities (six of which I've never been to) and will be meeting up with friends, old and new alike, along the way. I’m leaving in less than a week and my first show, in Memphis, is in one week from today! Needless to say, I’m incredibly stoked about what I’m calling my Great American Duranadventure!
Today is Duran Duran Appreciation Day. I hope that what I've written explains, to a certain degree, why I appreciate them so very much. I'd like to dedicate this blog entry to Friends of Mine. You know who you are...
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