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True Godfathers Of Punk: Part 5 - Siouxsie And The Banshees
I was reading a music article and the writer (if a human being) made an interesting statement. He said a person could get a mohawk haircut and leather jacket and become a Punk Rocker. That statement told me that the writer was younger (than me) and was getting information about the punk era from second and third hand articles that had stereotyped Punkers.
The reason I say that the writer's sources were second or third hand is simple; just look at original pictures of punk rockers and artists in the '70s, not just the later hardcore types but the actual first wave artists and you'll find that virtually none of them wore a mohawk. Rock and Roll may live forever, but haircuts and clothes rarely do. That's certainly goes for mohawks which never look good on an old fogey.
Treating Punk music as nostalgia or Golden Oldies is understandable as it all happened almost 50 years ago, but that wouldn't be an entirely accurate attitude. Many of the first wave artists had an effect on music that continues to this day.
One of those artists was Siouxsie Sioux of “Siouxsie and the Banshees.”
Siouxsie And The Banshees began recording in 1978, which is more the start of the Post Punk and Alternative era, but the singer Siouxsie Sioux was among the first wave in terms of being a fan and live musician. She was one of the small group of fans who followed the Sex Pistols before they recorded, which included later stars like Billy idol and Joe Strummer of the Clash. Her first live performance was with an impromptu band at a festival which included Sid Vicious as the drummer.
The band was critically acclaimed from the start and recorded a string of albums that were cited as influences on bands stretching into the 90s. Listing the bands and artists who admired or were influenced by her would take up the entire blog entry. A short list would include Joy Division, Depeche Mode, Cure, Smiths (and by extension Johnny Marr and Morrissey), Radiohead, Jeff Buckley, PJ Harvey, LCD Sound System and Sinead O' Connor.
One reason their music has what one could call a timeless quality was that, like a lot of the best first wave artists, they moved quickly into their own unique style which didn't include using the late 70s and early 80s electronic drum sound that dates most music from that period. The other is that the style that they helped pioneer, that dark Goth sound, is still current and loved by a dedicated subculture of fans.
Siouxsie and the Banshees created dark, gothic style music with an impressive range of rhythms and textures. In other words, for a music fan looking for powerful yet complex music, this band would be right up their alley.
Their first few albums were quite good, particularly with their innovative arrangements of old Beatle numbers like "Dear Prudence." They deconstructed that classic and reinterpreted it in a way that's still being done by other artists who were influenced by them. However, for me, the album that really caught my attention was "Juju," their fourth album. The opening cut, "Spellbound," was a spectacular number that moves through a lot of changes in texture and rhythm but still drives hard like rock and roll. Only the best bands can do that.
Another excellent album, which I have to mention, and some of you might even know it, is "Peep show," with its cool hit, "Peek a Boo." The remarkable thing about that
album is its done in their style but sounds completely different from earlier albums like Juju. They were not a band it sounded the same all the time.
I recommend checking out this band on your favorite music service to discover why this band is so esteemed and influential.
Al Handa
September 2024
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