Seven and the Ragged Tiger is the sound of a band fully embracing their superstar status. Duran Duran's third album finds the Brits sanding off their quirkier edges and moving toward a more overtly commercial sound. Not that their earlier albums were exactly avant-garde, but the artier, more obscure cuts on the first two records find no parallels here. This album is a straight-up radio-friendly pop party, from the earworm "why-yi-yi" hook of "The Reflex" to the cosmopolitan funk groove and serpentine, sensual vibe of "Union of the Snake." That the band pull it all off with such class shows the level of pop mastery they'd achieved.