Duran Duran in the Studio With Mark Ronson

Duran Duran have entered the studio to record their 13th album with production by producer Mark Ronson. The group and Ronson worked together last summer for a special gig in Paris.

While Ronson has become huge in the last couple of years while working with Amy Winehouse, Lily Allen, Robbie Williams, Adele and others, he's been friends with John Taylor back to their childhoods. Ronson also recently admitted that, when he was young, he idolized the band and would "take a picture of John Taylor with me to the barber shop".

On the Duran Duran blog, the group says "Working with Ronson is a natural next step for the band, who continue to challenge themselves with each new phase of their career."

In a separate blog entry, Roger Taylor writes:

"When I get back to London we’re going to go back in to the studio with Mark Ronson. I have no idea what it’s going to be like, even though we worked with him on the Smirnoff event in Paris. That was a different thing, it was a live performance, with our songs, his songs… and this is going to be about creating new music. I don’t know how he works at all, how he creates from his end. We have no idea whether he comes in with a Programmer, whether he comes in with a guitar and a drum machine…no clue but we’re excited to see it unfold. We really got on with him in Paris, he is a great guy, totally unpretentious and very talented. He started out his career as a DJ but he is also a great musician. I am feeling very good about it all."

There's no word on when to expect a finished product.