Never Say Never, But Definitely No
a perfume rave with Duran Duran, Anthony Kiedis (still) sucking, ADHD brain, and other scattered notes from the field
Last night, I found myself at a private, haunted house-themed art immersion/nightclub hybrid with Duran Duran. The event was for the launch of their—wait for it—perfume line. Yes, you can now smell like an 80s pop band if that's your kind of thing. The event took place in a clandestine, underground lair off a back alley in Covent Garden. John Taylor was dressed as a vampire (or is this always how he looks?) in a Victorian blouse and shiny leather equestrian knee-high boots. He lounged on a bed of satin red sheets, picking at a bass guitar while a girl in lingerie lay at his feet. Simon Le Bon was writing lines of poetry and lyrics in a dungeon like an imprisoned madman, Nick Rhodes was in the role of a paparazzi photographer, and Roger Taylor DJ'd the rave portion of the night. I can probably only name two Duran Duran songs, but I gotta admit, DJ Roger Taylor's musical choices were pretty stellar. He played a lot of classic goth hits that reminded me of my childhood. My mom would've loved it.
Unfortunately, I don't have any photographic evidence because they didn't allow phones. Supposedly, this was to keep everyone "present" in the boomer fever dream, but most likely, it was to ensure people like me wouldn't post pictures of the event on Substack today. Thankfully, there are already Getty images that prove I wasn’t hallucinating.
Speaking of rockstars...My essay The Rockstar Must Die is getting a second wind, probably because Ione Skye's memoir Say Everything reminded everyone that Anthony Kiedis has been openly dating teenagers for 40 years. Skye was 16 when 24 year old Kiedis put her through multiple HIV scares and, when she got pregnant, paid for her abortion but refused to go with her. What. A. Gentleman.
I don't know much about Skye beyond Say Anything. Oh, and I met her brother last year but I didn’t really know who he was either. Of course, he Googled himself in front of me to show me his Wikipedia page, then asked if I wanted to go on a date to a swingers club…
Me: Uh, I'm never going to date you.
Him: Never say never. Life is long.