Red Carpet Massacre

Red Carpet Massacre is the twelfth studio album by English pop rock band Duran Duran. It was released on 19 November 2007 in Europe, and on 13 November in the United States.

Most of the music on the current incarnation of the album was completed in late 2006 after the departure of band member Andy Taylor, when music producer Timbaland began working with the band.

For the week of 19 November, Red Carpet Massacre debuted at #36 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling about 29,000 copies in its first week.[1] However, the following week the album fell to #116. For the week of 26 November, the album debuted at #44 in the UK, becoming the 2nd poorest UK Chart entry in the band’s career, after Pop Trash from 2000. The album entered the Italian chart at #10. As of 2 May 2008, the album has moved 88,000 copies in the U.S.[2] The album spent only three consecutive weeks in the Billboard 200 chart. Also in the U.S., it was completely ignored by critics.

It was the band’s only other album released with Epic Records. The band parted ways with Sony Music in 2009.

The band did its initial recording for its follow-up to Astronaut with producer Michael Patterson between September 2005 and April 2006. Roger Taylor said in March 2006, “The record will be in some ways a homage to our roots as a band, more direct and a return to our dance and ‘new wave’ origins”, and that they had brought fifteen tracks to near completion.[3]