THE DUKE SPIRIT and THE REAL PEOPLE will join DURAN DURAN as special guests for their forthcoming UK arena shows, which kick off this week. THE DUKE SPIRIT will perform in London at the O2 Arena on Thursday July 3rd, Nottingham Trent FM Arena on Sunday 6th July and Birminghams NIA on Monday July 7t. THE REAL PEOPLE will perform at Liverpools Echo Arena on Saturday 5th July.
THE DUKE SPIRIT will replace THE LONG BLONDES who have now cancelled all of their live appearances for July after guitarist Dorian Cox was taken ill.
THE DUKE SPIRIT and THE REAL PEOPLE are the latest artists to open for DURAN DURAN on their RED CARPET MASSACRE WORLD TOUR, which started in March of this year in New Zealand and has so far taken in Australia, the Far East, Japan and the US.
Influenced by both noise rock and grunge, darkly seductive garage rockers THE DUKE SPIRIT, have already made their mark, garnering comparisons to My Bloody Valentine and The Pixies, with guest spots on a number of high profile tours from Razorlight and Kasabian to Queens of the Stone Age, Mercury Rev and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Formed by singer Liela Moss and guitarist Luke Ford when they were at Cheltenham Art College, The Duke Spirit have rapidly gained a cult following for their live performances. The five-piece London-based outfit are just about to embark upon an extensive festival tour of the US to promote their new single My Sunken Treasure taken from their latest album NEPTUNE, which is already gaining critical acclaim for its unique sound, combining bombastic rock n roll with beautiful tender lullabies.
Influenced by the Stone Roses and Inspiral Carpets and cited by Oasis brothers, Liam and Noel Gallagher, as one of their major musical and songwriting influences, Liverpudlian locals THE REAL PEOPLE are seasoned performers, having supported such luminaries as David Bowie, Nelly Furtado, Simple Minds and Ocean Colour Scene. Formed by brothers Chris and Richard Griffiths, the pair have enjoyed chart success with THE REAL PEOPLE alongside writing credits on a recent string of Top 40 hits for a number of artists, including Tunde (Lighthouse Family), Ocean Colour Scene, Rooster, ex-Atomic Kitten star Natasha Hamilton and Icelandic band Nylon.
Keyboardist Nick Rhodes said We were obviously very disappointed that the Long Blondes couldnt join us, but we are delighted that The Duke Spirit and The Real People were able to fill their shoes - as we know that both bands are amazing live and will be a real treat for our fans.
With their RED CARPET MASSACRE WORLD TOUR now well underway, to rave reviews from both critics and fans alike, DURAN DURAN are currently enjoying their European summer run, which will take in eleven countries in just under a month and a half. The 02 show in London, which comes two weeks into this leg of the tour, will be the bands first in this venue and falls the day after a special collaborative one-off date that they have put together with long-time Duran-fan Mark Ronson, as part of the Smirnoff Experience series in France.
The four original members of Duran Duran: Simon LeBon, Nick Rhodes, Roger Taylor and John Taylor, will be bringing a spectacular new production to British shores that will showcase their latest record, alongside all of the fan-favorites from their vast catalogue of hits. This will be not only the first time that the band have performed at the O2 Arena in London, but also their first outing at both the Liverpool Echo Arena and the NIA in Birmingham.
The four UK shows are:
3 July O2 Arena, London 5 July Liverpool Echo Arena 6 July Nottingham Trent FM Arena 7 July Birmingham NIA
THEM, SO VERY MUCH. THAT ALBUM THEY HAD 10 YEARS AGO WAS REALLY GOOD!!! 
