It’s taken us a full week to recover from the supercrazy awesomeness of the first ever Gimme a Wristband party at the Rockit Room in San Francisco! Before they ship us off to rehab, we’ve just gotta gush about it a little bit.

Last Friday, fans of the site, unsuspecting club-goers and die-hard Duranies made their way out to the Avenues to party hard with Duran Duran Duran and Madam and the Ants — and they were not disappointed. The lovely Madam and her saucy entourage did more than just ‘stand and deliver.’ All pirate-scarves and white-striped noses, they stripped for me and they stripped for you. Talk about warming up the crowd!

As the strains of Silva Halo floated through the packed house, we knew this wasn’t going to be any ordinary Duran tribute band. Truly a Fab Five (six counting the luscious backup singer), this tribute band packed more heat into two full sets than almost Duran Duran themselves. They tore it up. They broke it down. They were relentless, covering every major hit and then turning around to totally knock us out with new stuff like Girl Panic! The crowd danced themselves into a lather, with one partygoer repeatedly exclaiming, “I’m wet! I’m just completely wet !” (you’re welcome, Debbie).

All of this madness was punctuated with plenty of prize giveaways. We were offered many tempting bribes, but stuck to the reliable raffle-ticket-and-bucket method of awarding signed Duran Duran CDs and exclusive, not-available-anywhere-else Gimme a Wristband goodies (ok, so John Taylor and Roger Taylor have GaW shirts too, but no one else!). And those one-of-a-kind Punk Masters t-shirts were freaking incredible (thanks, miz Patty P)!

Big thanks and tons of sloppy kisses to to everyone who came out to party with us, to the hard-working bands and to each and every one of our friends who pitched in to make the night an amazing success. We couldn’t have done this without you.

So what do you think… should we do it all over again? I hear London calling…

“I feel that we do something which brings people together, makes people feel good about themselves, makes people feel that they’re not alone. Making people feel not alone, I feel we’re providing a very useful service.”

Simon Le Bon, Los Angeles Times, April 13, 2011

This little scrapbook is our way of saying thank you to Duran Duran for bringing us all together again. If you would like to share your own joy and appreciation, upload your photo at Gimme a Wristband Facebook and we’ll add it to the gallery.

Sorry, were you planning on actually getting some work done today? You can give up any hope of productivity and kiss common sense goodbye when you click on the these thumbnails of the ten-page spread on Duran Duran in L’Uomo Vogue. If you’d like to wallpaper your bedroom (or at very least, the ceiling) you can download the hi-res versions here.

If you’re still somehow maintaining a grip on consciousness, have a look at this video of the photo shoot at Syon House in West London. That should do it.

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Many thanks to Amanda L. for the scans.

Duran Duran has released a bespoke Deluxe Collectors Edition vinyl version of their latest album, All You Need is Now. The five-disc set is being marketed as a true objet d′art; wrapped not in chrome, but in ‘handcrafted’ perspex. Limited to only 500 copies worldwide, the hand signed and numbered editions with their clear vinyl, unreleased material, remixes and embossed foil lyric booklets has instantly ignited a burning lust within the fan community. We now have a new, unobtainable something-or-other to yearn for, to suffer over, to debate.

The price of this beauty is £250, or about $400. For this same amount of money, you could buy an iPad or a pair of really nice shoes. You could could buy twenty copies of the reissue of George Michael’s Faith, or you could provide clean drinking water for 400 kids in Guatemala for an entire month. You could even purchase a VIP concert experience, one that includes a chance to meet the band. It’s all how you choose to spend your money – if you even have it to spend.

Compared to limited edition offerings from other artists, this bundle is priced at the highest end of the spectrum. The price point is causing many people to cry foul, accusing the band of taking advantage of their fans. Because, while this limited run version of the album isn’t quite $600-for-a-Jimmy-Page-picture-book crazy, it’s still pretty darn close. However, it is also incredibly beautiful and mysterious and rare. Not to mention the fact that each copy is guaranteed to have passed through the actual hands of each Duran. I mean, can you really put a price on cooties?

But, the real reason this record is so expensive is: because you want it. You want it just like you want that VIP wristband. Your desire has set the price, not some imagined greed by the band. Duran Duran know what people want, and they are providing it – supply & demand, in other words. All 500 copies will sell quickly, and each person who buys a copy will be ecstatic – including those who turn around and flip them for twice the amount on eBay. Other more affordable vinyl editions will be released, and as long as Duranies shall live, there will be more product to covet.

If you think it’s too expensive, don’t buy it. If you can afford it (and it really is what you want) then support your favorite band and buy something special, a something which makes you happy just to hold it. Or, you could listen
to All You Need Is Now on iTunes and donate a few bucks to one of John Taylor’s favorite charities, the UNICEF Tap Project.

Thanks to Duran Duran, you’ve got choices.
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