Duran Duran, Brighton Centre, King’s Road, Wednesday, December 2

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With a slightly drunk middle-aged woman trying to get me to dance this was definitely a Duran Duran show.

But stripping away the cynicism about the titans of 1980s new wave, they knew how to put on a slick and polished performance.

With a near blinding lighting rig behind them, Simon Le Bon led the band to the stage as they launched into titular track of their latest album Paper Gods.

The veteran New Romantics brought a show fit for a stadium with big funky bass licks, plenty of heavy synth, big anthems, and a pair of grooving backing singers who took centre stage for the duets.

Le Bon deserves a spot among of the halls of the great frontmen as he stood with his shoulder wide stance, oozing charisma, with a voice which has not faltered in 30 years.

Aside from a brief hiccup when they missed the cue for the intro of Sunrise, prompting Le Bon to cheekily call for a second crack at the tune, their performance was faultless.

Closing with a touching tribute to the victims of the Paris attacks with Save A Prayer before ending with crowd-pleaser Rio, Duran Duran offered an evening of pure, unashamed fun.

Four stars

Courtesy The Argus

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