Sunday, 26 October's Los Angeles Times gave Medazzaland a 2 star review:

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 anyone 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. -- Ernesto Lechner