ALBUM REVIEW / POP

** Duran Duran, “Medazzaland,” Capitol. You have to pity an album that makes you look back with fondness on trashy Duran oldies such as “Rio” or “Save a Prayer.” Still, for anybody who doubted that beneath their cynical veneer lay a bunch of sentimental lads, “Medazzaland” offers a few marginal pleasures, from the bubble-gum chorus of “Electric Barbarella” to the trip-hop drums and piano of “Midnight Sun.” But the use of bhangra elements in “Buried in the Sand” is shamelessly opportunistic, an indication that “Medazzaland” is a sonic carnival filled with empty masks. Duran Duran plays the Universal Amphitheatre on Dec. 9.

Albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).