Duran Duran heads roster of upcoming Las Vegas concerts

Las Vegas Review-Journal

6 years ago

US Pop and Soul singer Diana Ross performs during her concert at the "Live at Sunset" festival in Zurich, Switzerland, Wednesday, July 9, 2008. (AP Photo/Keystone/Steffen Schmidt)

In this July 4, 2014 file photo, Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter, left, and Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson of The Roots, perform during an Independence Day celebration in Philadelphia. The Roots are tapping into their resources to help raise funds for their high-school alma mater in Philadelphia. The Grammy-winning hip-hop band created the CAPA Foundation after learning that $1.1 million had been cut from the budget of the Philadelphia High School for Creative and Performing Arts. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, File)

In this Tuesday, July 20, 2004 file photo, Gene Simmons, bass player for the band Kiss, performs during their performance at the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel, N.J. The heavy metal veterans are joining a growing list of classic acts putting out new music through the superstore: “Sonic Boom” is due to be released only at Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club on Oct. 6, 2009. The three-disc project will include a CD of new music, re-recorded versions of their famous hits and a live DVD. The project represents their first album of new music in 11 years. (AP Photo/Christopher Barth, File)

Lady Antebellum’s Charles Kelley, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood, from left, perform at the iHeartCountry Festival at the Frank Erwin Center on Saturday, May 6, 2017, in Austin, Texas. (Photo by Jack Plunkett/Invision/AP)

From wild boys to men, so goes Duran Duran. Forty years in, the band’s current tour is still a timely one.

Beginning with its self-titled 1981 debut, Duran Duran helped popularize both the look and sound of the New Wave boom, a ubiquitous presence on a then-nascent MTV, establishing it as one of the first bands to fully realize the commercial and artistic potential of the music video.

Decades later, the highly stylized synth-pop aesthetic Duran Duran helped develop is all over the contemporary airwaves, keeping the English group relevant as it headlines The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on Feb. 22 and 23.

No need to be nostalgic for the past when it’s such a part of the present.

Other shows of note this month:

Diana Ross, Encore Theater at Wynn Las Vegas, Wednesday-Feb. 23

Turning 75 next month, diva supreme Diana Ross is celebrating with a new show of old standards you know by heart. Don’t skimp on the b-day present, cheapskate.

Lady Antebellum, The Pearl at the Palms, Friday-Feb. 16

“You Look Good.” Awww, thanks Lady Antebellum, do you say that to all the girls? Find out if this is the case when the pop country trio airs that hit single and more as part of its 15-date “Our Kind of Vegas” show at The Pearl, the venue’s first country residency.

Mariah Carey, The Colosseum at Caesars Palace, Feb. 13-21

If Diana Ross pretty much wrote the book on what it means to be a diva, Mariah Carey deserves at least a page or two. Hot off the November release of her acclaimed 15th studio album, “Caution,” frequently cited by critics as one of the best pop records of 2018, Carey returns for another extended Vegas engagement.

Kiss, T-Mobile Arena, Feb. 15

You wanted the best, you’re getting the best — one last time, at least — as the veteran hard rockers/codpiece aficionados bring their farewell “End of the Road World Tour” to Vegas.

Dave Keuning, The Bunkhouse Saloon, Feb. 15

Killers guitarist Dave Keuning didn’t tour with the group in support of its most recent album, “Wonderful Wonderful,” but that doesn’t mean he was just Netflix-and-chilling. Instead, Keuning was just as busy as his bandmates, crafting his solo debut, “Prismism,” an album of darting synth lines and buoyant hooks released last month.

Bring Me the Horizon, The Joint at the Hard Rock Hotel, Feb. 16

From brutal to, uh, Bieber? OK, so it may be a slight overstatement to say that this British metalcore troupe has gone pop. But on its latest album, “Amo,” Bring Me the Horizon continues to emphasize its increasinglymelodic edge and more pronounced electronic flourishes, moving from the mosh pit to the dance floor.

The Roots, Feb. 22, The Joint

Are The Roots the best live hip-hop act? More fitting question, are they the best live act, period? They’ll make their case for both when hitting town in advance of new album “End Game.”

Lettuce, Brooklyn Bowl at The Linq, Feb. 28

You must possess a surplus of chutzpah — and chops — to try your hand at Miles Davis’ inimitable repertoire, yet that’s what this jazz-influenced funk sextet did on 2017’s “Witches Stew” — and did it well.

Death Grips, House of Blues at Mandalay Bay, Feb. 28

Punch your ears in the face when this assaultive experimental hip-hop crew brings the noise for real via electronics and frontman MC Ride frothing on the mic as if bitten by Cujo.

Contact Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476. Follow @JasonBracelin on Twitter.