Siouxsie Sioux | |
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 Siouxsie Sioux performing in 1980 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Susan Janet Ballion (1957-05-27)27 May 1957 (age 68) Southwark, London, England |
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| Years active | 1976–present |
| Labels | |
| Formerly of | |
Spouse | |
| Website | siouxsie.com |
Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), known asSiouxsie Sioux (/ˌsuːziˈsuː/,soo-zee-SOO), is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence as the singer and main lyricist of the rock bandSiouxsie and the Banshees. They released 11 studio albums from 1978 to 1995, and had several UK top twenty singles including "Hong Kong Garden" (1978), "Happy House" (1980) and "Peek-a-Boo" (1988), plus a top 25 single in the USBillboard Hot 100 with "Kiss Them for Me" (1991).
Siouxsie also formed a second group,the Creatures, in 1981, with whom she released four studio albums and singles such as "Right Now". After disbanding the Creatures in the mid-2000s, she has continued as a solo artist using the name Siouxsie, and released the albumMantaray to critical acclaim in 2007.
AllMusic named Siouxsie as "one of the most influential British singers of the rock era".[1] Her songs have been covered byJeff Buckley,Tricky,LCD Soundsystem, and sampled byMassive Attack andthe Weeknd. In 2011, she was awarded for Outstanding Contribution to Music at theQ Awards,[2] and in 2012, she received the Inspiration Award at theIvor Novello Awards.[3]
Siouxsie was born Susan Janet Ballion[4] on 27 May 1957 atGuy's Hospital inSouthwark, England.[5] Her sister and brother were born while the family was in theBelgian Congo.[5] Her parents met there and worked for a few years. Her mother, Elizabeth, was of Scottish and English descent and was a secretary who spoke both French and English.[6] Her father, Marc, was abacteriologist who milkedvenom from snakes, and came fromWallonia, the French-speaking part of Belgium. In the mid-1950s, before Siouxsie's birth, the family moved to England.
The Ballions lived in a suburban district inChislehurst,Kent. Siouxsie was an isolated child, being unable to invite friends to her house because of her alcoholic, unemployed father.[7] Despite his issues, Siouxsie regarded him as intelligent and well-read, and sympathised with his inability to fit in with a "rigid, middle-class society".[8] During moments of sobriety, her father shared with her his love for books. Siouxsie was aware that her family was different;[9] the Ballions were not involved in the local community and Siouxsie, aware that her family's house differed from the neighbours', would later state that "the suburbs inspired intense hatred."[9]
At the age of nine, she and a friend were sexually assaulted by a neighbour. The assault was ignored by both her parents and the police,[10] and was not spoken of in the family. The incident and the way it was treated led Siouxsie to distrust adults.[11] Years later, she stated:
I grew up having no faith in adults as responsible people. And being the youngest in the family I was isolated – I had no one to confide in. So I invented my own world, my own reality. It was my own way of defending myself – protecting myself from the outside world. The only way I could deal with how to survive was to get some strong armour.[11]
Her father died of alcoholism-related illness when Siouxsie was 14 years old, resulting in a decline in her health. Siouxsie lost a great deal of weight and failed to attend school. After several misdiagnoses, she was operated on and survived a bout ofulcerative colitis.[12] During the weeks of recovery in mid-1972, she watched television in the hospital and sawDavid Bowie onTop of the Pops.[11]
At 17, she left school. During this period she began visiting the local gay discos frequented by her sister's friends.[13] She later introduced her own friends to that scene. In November 1975, theSex Pistols performed at the local art college in Chislehurst. Siouxsie did not attend, but one of her friends told her they sounded likethe Stooges, and that singerJohnny Rotten had threatened students attending the gig. In February 1976, Siouxsie and her friendSteven Severin went to see the Sex Pistols play in London. After chatting with members of the band, Siouxsie and Severin decided to follow them regularly.[14] In the following months, journalistCaroline Coon coined the term "Bromley Contingent" to describe this group of eccentric teenagers devoted to the Sex Pistols.[15]
Siouxsie became well known in the London club scene for her glam,fetish- andbondage-inspired attire, which later became part ofpunk fashion.[11] She would also heavily influence the later development ofgothic fashion with her signature cat-eye makeup, deep red lipstick, spiky dyed-black hair, and black clothing.[11] In early September 1976, the Bromley Contingent followed the Sex Pistols to France, where Siouxsie was beaten up for wearing acupless bra and a black armband with aswastika on it. She claimed her intent was to shock the older generation, not to make a political statement.[16] She later wrote the song "Metal Postcard (Mittageisen)" (in memory of theanti-Nazi artistJohn Heartfield).[17]
Following theDIY ethos and the idea that the people in the audience could be the people on stage, Siouxsie and Severin decided to form a band. When a support slot at the100 Club Punk Festival (organised byMalcolm McLaren) opened up, they decided to make an attempt at performing, although at that time they did not know how to play any songs. On 20 September 1976, the band improvised 20 minutes of music while Siouxsie sang the "Lord's Prayer".[18]
For criticJon Savage, Siouxsie was "unlike any female singer before or since, commanding yet aloof, entirely modern".[19]Viv Albertine fromthe Slits said:
Siouxsie just appeared fully made, fully in control, utterly confident. It totally blew me away. There she was doing something that I dared to dream but she took it and did it and it wiped the rest of the festival for me, that was it. I can't even remember everything else about it except that one performance.[20]
One of Siouxsie's first public appearances was with the Sex Pistols onBill Grundy's television show, onThames Television in December 1976.[21] Standing next to the band, Siouxsie made fun of the presenter when he asked her how she was doing. She responded: "I've always wanted to meet you, Bill." Grundy, who later claimed he was drunk, suggested a meeting after the show, which provoked guitaristSteve Jones to respond with a series of expletives inappropriate for prime-time television.[21] This episode created a media furore on the front covers of several tabloids, including theDaily Mirror, which published the headline "Siouxsie's a Punk Shocker". The event had a major impact on the Sex Pistols' subsequent career, and they became a household name overnight.[22]
Aware of the press surrounding both herself and the Sex Pistols, Siouxsie began to distance herself from the scene and stopped seeing the Sex Pistols after the 15 December 1976 gig at Notre Dame Hall. From then, she focused her energy on her own band, Siouxsie and the Banshees.[23]
In 1977, Siouxsie and the Banshees toured the UK, with Severin on bass,Kenny Morris on drums andJohn McKay on guitar.[24] One year later, their first single, "Hong Kong Garden" reached number 7 in theUK Singles Chart.[25] With its oriental-inflectedxylophone motif,Melody Maker deemed it "a glorious debut [...] All the elements come together with remarkable effect. The song is strident and powerful with tantalisingorientalguitar riffs plus words and vocals that are the result of anger, disdain and isolation. No-one will be singled out because everyone is part and parcel of the whole. It might even be a hit".[26]
Their debut album,The Scream (1978), was one of the firstpost-punk records released. It received 5-star reviews inSounds[27] andRecord Mirror.[28] The latter said that the record "points to the future, real music for thenew age".[28] The music was different from the single; it was angular, dark and jagged.The Scream was retrospectively hailed byDon WatsonNME as one of the best debut albums of all time.[29]Join Hands followed in 1979 with war as the lyrical theme.[30]
The 1980 albumKaleidoscope marked the arrival ofJohn McGeoch, considered "one of the most innovative and influential guitarists" byThe Guardian,[31] and drummerBudgie. The hit single "Happy House" was qualified as "great Pop" with "liquid guitar"[32] and other songs like "Red Light" were layered with electronic sounds.Kaleidoscope widened Siouxsie's audience, reaching the top 5 in theUK Albums Chart.Juju followed in 1981, reaching number 7; the singles "Spellbound" and "Arabian Knights" were described as "pop marvels" byThe Guardian.[33] During recording sessions forJuju, Siouxsie and Budgie formed a second bandthe Creatures, a duo characterized by a stripped-down sound focused on vocals and drums; their first record, theEPWild Things, was a commercial success.Record Mirrorreviewed it as an "astonishingly successful exercise. Several Siouxsie voices over Budgie's quite magnificent drums and percussion make up the entire fabric but it never sounds sparse... A surprise and a triumph."[34]
In 1982, the Siouxsie and the Banshees' albumA Kiss in the Dreamhouse was widely acclaimed by critics.[35] Richard Cook ofNME depicted it as "a feat of imagination scarcely ever recorded".[36] The single "Slowdive" was "a violin-colored dance beat number".[37] They included strings for the first time on several songs. The recording sessions took their toll, and McGeoch was forced to quit the band.[38]
In 1983, Siouxsie went to Hawaii to record the Creatures' first album,Feast, which included the hit single "Miss the Girl". It was her first incursion intoexotica, incorporating sounds of waves, local Hawaiian choirs and local percussion. Later that year, Siouxsie and Budgie released "Right Now", a song fromMel Tormé's repertoire that the Creatures re-orchestrated with brass arrangements;[39] "Right Now" soon became a top 20 hit single in the UK. Then, with the Banshees (including guitaristRobert Smith ofthe Cure), she coveredthe Beatles' "Dear Prudence", which reached number 3 on the UK Singles Chart.[40] Two albums followed with Smith:Nocturne, recorded live in London in 1983, and 1984'sHyæna. In 1985, the single "Cities in Dust" was recorded with sequencers; it climbed to number 21 in the UK charts.Entertainment Weekly noted that it was the first of a handful ofAlternative rock radio hits in the US.[41] 1986'sTinderbox and the 1987covers albumThrough the Looking Glass both reached the top 15 in the UK.[42]
In 1988, the single "Peek-a-Boo" marked a musical departure from her previous work,[43] anticipatinghip hop-inspired rock with the use ofsamples.NME called it an "oriental marching band hip hop with farting horns and catchy accordion"[44] andMelody Maker "a brightly unexpected mixture of black steel and pop disturbance".[45] ThePeepshow album received a five star review inQ magazine.[46] The ballad "The Last Beat of My Heart" issued as a single, saw her using accordion and strings.[47]
Siouxsie and Budgie then went toAndalusia in Spain to record the second Creatures album,Boomerang. The songs featured backing music ranging fromflamenco tojazz andblues styles and brass on most songs. The first single was "Standing There".NME calledBoomerang "a rich and unsettling landscape of exotica".[48]Anton Corbijn visited the group during the recording near Jerez de la Frontera, and Siouxsie convinced him to take photographs in colour, unlike his prior work which was inblack-and-white: the photos used for the promotion showed Siouxsie and Budgie in fields surrounded with sunflowers.[49] In 1990, she toured for the first time with the Creatures, in Europe and North America.[50]
On 1991's dance-oriented "Kiss Them for Me" single, Siouxsie and the Banshees usedSouth Asian instrumentation, which had become popular in the UK club scene with the growth ofbhangra.[51][52] Indiantabla playerTalvin Singh (who was laterBjörk's percussionist on her 1993Debut album) took part in the session and provided vocals for the bridge. With "Kiss Them for Me", the Banshees scored a hit on the USBillboard Hot 100 peaking at number 23.[53] After the release ofSuperstition which received enthusiastic reviews,[54] the group co-headlined the firstLollapalooza tour.
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In 1992, film directorTim Burton requested that she write a song forBatman Returns, and the Banshees composed the single "Face to Face".[55]
In the mid-1990s, Siouxsie started to do one-off collaborations with other artists.Suede invited her to a benefit concert for theRed Hot Organization. With guitaristBernard Butler, she performed a version ofLou Reed's "Caroline Says".Spin reviewed it as "haughty and stately".[56]Morrissey, ex-lead singer ofthe Smiths, recorded a duet with Siouxsie in 1994: they both sang on the single "Interlude", a track that was initially performed byTimi Yuro, a female torch singer of the 1960s. "Interlude" was released under the banner "Morrissey and Siouxsie".[57]
The last Banshees studio album,The Rapture, was released in 1995; it was written partly inToulouse, where she had recently moved. After the accompanying tour, the Banshees announced their split during a press conference called "20 Minutes into 20 Years". The Creatures became her only band.[58] At the same time, she released the song "The Lighthouse" on French producerHector Zazou's albumChansons des mers froides (which translates toSongs from the Cold Seas), with jazz trumpetistMark Isham. Siouxsie and Zazou adapted the poem "Flannan Isle" by English poetWilfred Wilson Gibson.[59]
In February 1998 formerVelvet Underground memberJohn Cale invited her to a festival called "With a Little Help From My Friends" at theParadiso in Amsterdam. The concert was shown on Dutch national television and featured an unreleased Creatures composition, "Murdering Mouth", sung as a duet with Cale.[60] The two toured the US from June until August, performing "Murdering Mouth", and Cale's "Gun" together as the encores of a Creatures and Cale double bill.[61]
The following year, Siouxsie and Budgie releasedAnima Animus, the first Creatures album since the split of the Banshees. It included the singles "2nd Floor" and "Prettiest Thing". The material had an urban sound, blendingart rock andelectronica.Anima Animus was described byThe Times as "hypnotic and inventive".[62] Also in 1999, Siouxsie collaborated withMarc Almond on the track "Threat of Love".
In 2002, she did a short reunion tour with the Banshees titledThe Seven Year Itch. That same year, Universal releasedThe Best of Siouxsie and the Banshees as the first reissue of her back catalogue.
In 2003, Siouxsie and Budgie released the last Creatures album,Hái!, which was in part recorded in Japan, collaborating withtaiko player Leonard Eto (previously of theKodo Drummers). Peter Wratts wrote inTime Out: "Her voice is the dominant instrument here, snaking and curling around the bouncing drumming backdrop, elegiac and inhuman as she chants, purrs and whispers her way around the album". He called the record a "spine-tingling achievement".[63]Hái! was preceded by the single "Godzilla!". That year, Siouxsie was featured on the track "Cish Cash" byBasement Jaxx, from their albumKish Kash, which won Best Electronic/Dance Album at theGrammy Awards.[64]
In 2004 Siouxsie toured for the first time as a solo act, playing Banshees and Creatures songs. A live DVD calledDreamshow was recorded at the last London concert, in which she and her musicians were accompanied by a 16-piece orchestra, the Millennia Ensemble. Released in August 2005, this DVD reached number 1 in the UK music DVD chart.[65]
Her debut solo album,Mantaray, was released in September 2007.Pitchfork wrote, "She reallyis pop", before finishing the review by declaring, "It's a success".[66]Mojo stated: "a thirst for sonic adventure radiates from each track".[67]Mantaray included three singles: "Into a Swan", "Here Comes That Day" and "About to Happen". In 2008, Siouxsie recorded vocals for the track "Careless Love" onThe Edge of Love soundtrack by composerAngelo Badalamenti. She performed it with another Badalamenti number, "Who Will Take My Dreams Away", at the annual edition of theWorld Soundtrack Awards.[68] After a year of touring, the singer played the last show of her tour in London in September 2008. A live DVD of this performance,Finale: The Last Mantaray & More Show, was released in 2009.[69]
In June 2013, after a hiatus of five years, Siouxsie played two nights at the Royal Festival Hall in London duringYoko Ono'sMeltdown festival. She performed 1980'sKaleidoscope album live in its entirety, along with other works from her back catalogue, and her performance was praised by the press.[70] She also appeared at Ono'sDouble Fantasy concert, to sing the final song, "Walking on Thin Ice".[71] In October 2014, she and fellow Banshee Steven Severin compiled a CD titledIt's a Wonderfull Life for the November 2014 issue ofMojo magazine, in which she appeared on the cover.[72] The disc included 15 tracks that inspired the Banshees.[73]
"Love Crime", her first song in eight years,[74] was featured in the finale of the TV seriesHannibal in August 2015. Series creatorBryan Fuller called it "epic".[75]
In 2022,Mantaray was remastered atAbbey Road Studios to mark its 15th anniversary.Mantaray featuring a different artwork, was reissued on translucent red vinyl, black vinyl and CD.[76]
In 2023 Siouxsie headlined theCruel World Festival inPasadena, California in May,[77][78] and the ReleaseAthens 2023 festival in June.[79] Her performance inMadrid at the Noches del Botánico was praised byTime Out.[80]
In early 2024 Siouxsie collaborated withIggy Pop to record a new rendition of "The Passenger" for an advert.[81]
JournalistPaul Morley noted that Siouxsie's songs topics dealt with "mental illness, medical terrors, surreal diseases, depraved urges, sinister intensity, unearthly energy, sexual abuse, childhood disturbances, sordid mysteries, unbearable nervous anxiety, fairytale fears, urban discontent and the bleak dignity of solitude". Many of her songs are about damage; her childhood marked her profoundly. She said, "Damaged lives, damaged souls, damaged relationships. Most of the damage I sing about first happened when I was younger and I am still feeding off it and working it out. Early experiences are what create a lifetime of damage. The songs you write can help you fix the damage. And just the environment you are in is so important and can waste potential and corrupt something. For me, there was neglect. An alcoholic father who is not there because the most important thing for him is just to get alcohol and your mother is trying to compensate for the non-existent second parent so she's never there because she's working all the time and when she is around she's stressed out. Being isolated and not having anyone to connect with, there was just no physical touching back then".[82]
Her voice is, in its own right, the common thread through all of it. There is no one who sings like that. And I think there are a lot of people who were influenced by it, but even if you try and sing like her, you can't do that. You can't throw your voice like that. You can't throwharmony like that. That is a very distinct voice. Her technique is a thread between the really far-out stuff andopera and pop music. It's distinct. It's all her own.
Siouxsie has been praised by artists of many genres. She had a strong impact on twotrip-hop acts.Trickycovered 1983's proto trip-hop "Tattoo",[84] to open his second albumNearly God,[85] andMassive Attack sampled "Metal Postcard (Mittageisen)" on their song "Superpredators (Metal Postcard)" for the soundtrack to the filmThe Jackal.[86]
Other acts have covered Siouxsie's songs.Jeff Buckley performed "Killing Time" several times;[87] he first recorded it during a radio session forWFMU in 1992.[88]LCD Soundsystem recorded a cover of "Slowdive" for the B-side of "Disco Infiltrator", which was also released onIntrons.[89]Santigold based her track "My Superman" on the music of "Red Light".[90] In 2003,the Beta Band sampled "Painted Bird" on a track titled "Liquid Bird" on theirHeroes to Zeros album.[91]Red Hot Chili Peppers performed "Christine" at the V2001 festival and introduced it to their British audience as "your national anthem".[92] "Christine" was also revisited bySimple Minds.[93]Indie folk groupDeVotchKa covered "The Last Beat of My Heart" at the suggestion ofArcade Fire singerWin Butler in 2007.[94]The Weeknd sampled "Happy House" on the 2011 song "House of Balloons",[95] which he later performed at the 2021Super Bowl LV halftime show.[96]
Morrissey said that "Siouxsie and the Banshees were excellent. They were one of the great groups of the late 70s, early 80s".[97] In 1994, discussing modern bands, he also stated: "None of them are as good as Siouxsie and the Banshees at full pelt. That's not dusty nostalgia, that's fact".[98] Another member of the Smiths,Johnny Marr, said: "Really my generation was all about a guy called John McGeoch, from Siouxsie and the Banshees. He was a great player".[99] Marr hailed McGeoch for his work on Siouxsie's single "Spellbound". Marr qualified it as "clever" with "really good picky thing going on which is very un-rock'n'roll".[100]Radiohead also cited McGeoch-era Siouxsie records when mentioning the recording of "There There".[101] Their singer,Thom Yorke, said: "The band that really changed my life wasR.E.M. and Siouxsie and the Banshees ...". "My favourite show I ever saw then was Siouxsie and she was absolutely amazing. ... She's totally in command of the whole audience".[102] Yorke added that she "made an especially big impression in concert, she was really sexy but absolutely terrifying."[103]Sonic Youth singer and guitaristThurston Moore named "Hong Kong Garden" as one of his 25 all-time favourite songs,[104] and declared: "she possesses one of the great voices of our generation".[105]
Siouxsie has been named as an influence by other bands ranging from contemporariesJoy Division,[106]U2,[107] and the Cure,[108] to later acts likethe Jesus and Mary Chain,[109]Jane's Addiction[110] and TV on the Radio.[111] Joy Division co-founderPeter Hook said thatThe Scream inspired them for the "really unusual way of playing" of the guitarist and the drummer and cited the Banshees as "one of our big influences".[106] U2 frontmanBono named her as an influence in the band's 2006 autobiographyU2 by U2. He was inspired by her way of singing.[107] "I still think that I sing like Siouxsie from The Banshees on the first two U2 albums".[112] With his band, he selected "Christine" for a compilation made forMojo's readers.[113] U2 guitaristthe Edge also was the presenter of an award given to Siouxsie at aMojo ceremony in 2005.[114] The Cure's Robert Smith related what theJoin Hands tour brought him musically: "When we supported The Banshees in 1979, we suddenly became aware of how limited our palette was. I felt constrained, so when the opportunity arose to play with them I jumped at it and juggled the two bands for a while. It taught me a lot – they had fantastic rhythm sections and this made me think, 'Why can't I have this?'."[115] For Smith's recordThe Head on the Door in 1985, he stated: "It reminds me of theKaleidoscope album, the idea of having lots of different sounding things, different colours".[116]Dave Navarro of Jane's Addiction once made a parallel between his band and the Banshees: "There are so many similar threads: melody, use of sound, attitude, sex appeal. I always saw Jane's Addiction as the masculine Siouxsie and the Banshees".[110] Dave Sitek of TV on the Radio hailed the poppiest Siouxsie songs, citing their arrangements: "I've always tried to make a song that begins like "Kiss Them for Me". I think songs like "I Was a Lover" or "Wash the Day Away" came from that element of surprise mode where all of a sudden this giant drum comes in and you're like, what the fuck?! That record was the first one where I was like, okay, even my friends're going to fall for this. I feel like that transition into that record was a relief for me. Really beautiful music was always considered too weird by the normal kids and that was the first example where I thought, we've got them, they're hooked! I watched people dance to that song, people who had never heard of any of the music that I listened to, they heard that music in a club and went crazy".[111]Dave Gahan ofDepeche Mode said about her: "She always sounds exciting. She sings with a lot of sex–that's what I like".[117]Mark Lanegan stated that he would have liked to collaborate with her: "In my wildest dreams I would love to sing with Siouxsie".[118] She is also revered byDamon Albarn[119] andDave Grohl.[120]Omar Rodríguez-López ofthe Mars Volta mentioned his liking for "the very textural side of Siouxsie".[121] Santigold said, "I keep a Rolodex of the women that vocally inspire me. There aren't that many, but she's definitely one of them. I remember one of the first times I heard 'Red Light' it was at a party, and I remember going up to the DJ and being like, 'Who's this?'. It was that good. I kind of stopped and was like ... wow. There's not a tremendous amount of women who are bold and forward thinking as artists. I feel like her music, at the time especially, was pretty unique in the way that it sort of matched her style. The freedom of experimenting with this dark place that doesn't have a place often in modern music".[90]
Siouxsie has inspired many female singers. When asked if there was any figure who connected with her when she was just a listener,PJ Harvey replied: "It's hard to beat Siouxsie Sioux, in terms of live performance. She is so exciting to watch, so full of energy and human raw quality".[122] Harvey also selected in her top 10 favourite albums of 1999, theAnima Animus album by Siouxsie's second band the Creatures.[123]Sinéad O'Connor[124] said that when she started, Siouxsie was one of her main influences.[125]Tracey Thorn ofEverything but the Girl wrote in her autobiography that Siouxsie was one of her heroines.[126] Thorn paid homage to Siouxsie in the lyrics of her 2007 song "Hands Up to the Ceiling".[127]Elizabeth Fraser[128] ofCocteau Twins used to have a Siouxsie tattoo on her arm, and mentioned her liking for "Metal Postcard" to the members of Massive Attack in 1998.[129]Sharleen Spiteri ofTexas grew up listening to tracks such as "Hong Kong Garden" and was hooked by the Asian vibe present in the song;[130] she stated that Texas' single "In Our Lifetime" was "our tribute to Hong Kong Garden".[131]Garbage singerShirley Manson cited her as an influence: "I learned how to sing listening toThe Scream andKaleidoscope".[132] Manson also declared that Siouxsie embodied everything she wanted to be as a young woman.[133] Manson would later write theforeword toSiouxsie & The Banshees: The Authorised Biography.[134]Beth Ditto,[135] ofGossip cited her as one of their influences for their 2009 albumMusic for Men.[136]Ana Matronic ofScissor Sisters named Siouxsie as a source of inspiration and the Banshees as her favourite band.[137] Siouxsie was also hailed byRomy Madley Croft ofthe xx,[138]Kim Deal ofthe Pixies andthe Breeders,[139] and also byJosephine Wiggs of the Breeders,[140] and namechecked byKarin Dreijer Andersson ofthe Knife.[141]Kate Jackson ofthe Long Blondes said that Siouxsie was a part of her musical background,[142] thanks to her "sharp lyrics" on Creatures' tracks like "So Unreal".[143]Rachel Goswell mentioned her as a major influence: "From a singing point of view, I was inspired by Siouxsie Sioux, who I just adored. She's amazing. I've never seen anyone else quite like her";[144] her bandSlowdive was named on a suggestion of Goswell, inspired by the Banshees' single of the same name.[145]Lush were initially named "the Baby Machines", which the band culled from the lyrics of "Arabian Knights".[146]Courtney Love ofHole wrote Siouxsie in her favourite records' list when she was a teenager in her diary.[147] While talking about another band, Love also stated: "They are amazing. ... It's kind of very Siouxsie Sioux".[148]Kim Gordon ofSonic Youth said: "Initially I was really inspired by ... Siouxsie, Patti Smith".[149]FKA twigs named her as a main influence: "Every bit of music that I made sounded like a pastiche of Siouxsie ... but through that I discovered myself".[150]Róisín Murphy named Siouxsie when asked who were her biggest influences.[151]
Other musicians who have stated their admiration for Siouxsie's work includeCharli XCX,[152]Hayley Williams ofParamore,[153]Dolores O'Riordan ofthe Cranberries,[154]Jennifer Charles ofElysian Fields,[155]Ebony Bones,[156]Grimes,[157]Toni Halliday ofCurve,[158]Kathleen Hanna ofBikini Kill,[159]Cat Power,[160]Gillian Gilbert ofNew Order,[161]Amy Ray ofthe Indigo Girls,[162]Alison Goldfrapp,[163]Sarah Cracknell ofSaint Etienne,[164]Florence Welch ofFlorence + the Machine,[165]Chelsea Wolfe,[166]Brody Dalle ofthe Distillers,[167]Kristin Kontrol of theDum Dum Girls,[168]Joan As Police Woman,[169]Girlpool,[170]Liz Phair,[171]Billie Ray Martin,[172]An Pierlé,[173]Uffie,[174]Lauren Mayberry ofChvrches,[175]Meshell Ndegeocello,[176]St. Vincent,[177]Anohni,[178]Jenny Lee Lindberg ofWarpaint,[179]Sharon Van Etten,[180] andNabihah Iqbal.[181]
In 2022,Sky Arts ranked her at number 14 in Britain's top 50 most influential artists of the last 50 years.[182][183] In 2023,The Times called her "one of British pop's most charismatic and original artists".[184]
Siouxsie married bandmate Budgie in May 1991. The following year, they moved to the southwest of France.[185]
In an interview withThe Sunday Times in August 2007, she announced that she and Budgie had divorced.[186] In an interview withThe Independent, she said:
I've never particularly said I'mhetero or I'm a lesbian. I know there are people who are definitely one way, but not really me. I suppose if I am attracted to men then they usually have more feminine qualities.[187]
In 2023, she teamed up withPETA to protest againstanimal testing. In a letter to Japanese conglomerateAjinomoto, the world's largest manufacturer ofmonosodium glutamate (MSG), she wrote that the company "should be leading the way withcompassion, not falling behind. Please, stop being spellbound by bad science and end these cruel tests immediately."[188]
| Award | Year | Nominee(s) | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ivor Novello Awards | 2012 | Herself | The Ivors Inspiration Award | Won | [189] |
| MTV Video Music Awards | 1989 | "Peek-a-Boo" | Best Post-Modern Video | Nominated | [190] |
| NME Awards | 1980 | Herself | Best Female Singer | Won | [191] |
| 1981 | Won | ||||
| 1982 | Won |
| Year | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK [192] | FRA [193] | ||
| 2007 | Mantaray
| 39 | 132 |
| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| UK [194] | |||
| 2007 | "Into a Swan" | 59 | Mantaray |
| "Here Comes That Day" | 93 | ||
| 2008 | "About to Happen" | 154 | |
| 2015 | "Love Crime" | — | Single only |
| Year | Single | Artist | Peak positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [195] | ||||
| 1994 | "Interlude" | Morrissey & Siouxsie | 25 | Non-album single |
One of the most influential British females in rock
"Cities in Dust" (1985) was the first of a handful of Alternative rock radio hits in the U.S.
Oh poor Anton! He came out and he's always worked in black and white, he's never liked colour. And we had such a shock cause he's going on 'oh yes, I want to work in colour, I've discovered colour'. And it was great, as he had started painting and had a good eye which was a surprise. We thought'd it be a shame if he dulled the colours, but instead they were almost poster-like", enthuses Siouxsie.
And what better way to do so than by recording the theme song to a big Hollywood movie, Tim Burton's Batman Returns (1992). "I've always been a fan--Siouxsie is one of very few women who can create a realistic primal cat sound," quips the eccentric director, whose own striking style, not to mention that of characters like Edward Scissorhands, is arguably indebted to Sioux.
So here on the title track from that mixtape, we get a more-than-generous portion of Siouxsie and the Banshees' 1980 single "Happy House." which is worked into a softly anthemic slow-burn number full of diva-ish vocals tied to a chilly beat. John McGeoch's riff remains untouched and runs throughout most of the track, giving it a filmy pop feel that periodically peaks with a generous swipe from the "Happy House" chorus
During the brief interlude that segued into the final segment of the performance, dozens of millions of viewers were confronted with something that many wizening new wave fans would find almost impossible to imagine: hearing Siouxsie & the Banshees during the Super Bowl halftime performance. The Weeknd sampled the British postpunk group's 1980 song "Happy House" for the song "High for This" on his debut mixtape, but here it was just an interlude leading into the finale, which of course was his 2019 smash, "Blinding Lights
Colin Greenwood remembers: "The first single we're releasing is actually the longest song on the record. ("There There"). It was all recorded live in Oxford. We all got excited at the end because Nigel was trying to get Jonny to play like John McGeoch in Siouxsie and the Banshees. All the old farts in the band were in seventh heaven.
the part, when Thom Yorke talks about his influences and his first Siouxsie concert, is from 23 minutes 31 seconds in this show
Jim Reid of the Jesus and Mary Chain plays some of his favourite records, including tracks by Pink Floyd, Siouxsie & the Banshees, the Monkees and Muddy Waters
She sounds like herself, but there are also strong echoes of Siouxsie Sioux. She's brilliant
my sister, Lisa, three years older, was getting seriously into new wave territory. We'd meet in the middle sometimes with Bowie and Siouxsie And The Banshees
Man, when those two sing! Imagine Siouxsie Sioux and Lou Reed duetting.
Q: Was there any figure who connected with you when you were just a listener? A: It's hard to beat Siouxsie Sioux, in terms of live performance. She is so exciting to watch, so full of energy and human raw quality.
For one reason or one reason alone, it was hell sharing that room in my father' house with her [ [her elder sister Eimear]. She was in love with Barry Manilow. So her side of the room was papered with massive posters of me while mine was all Siouxsie and the Banshees.
Q: Qui étaient tes artistes préférés quand tu as commencé? A:Bob Dylan, il l'est probablement toujours. Il y avait aussi David Bowie, Bob Marley, Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Pretenders.(Translation) Q:Who were your favourite singers when you started? A:Bob Dylan, he probably still is. There were also David Bowie, Bob Marley, Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Pretenders.
My Heroines were Billie Holliday, Lesley Woods, Siouxsie, Nico and Astrud Gilberto. [...] [Morrissey] reminded me more of a male version of the female singers I liked – Patti Smith and Siouxsie – than any previous male rock star
Here is the street and here is the door, same as it was before, and up the stairs and on the wall was Doisneau's kiss and Terry Hall and Siouxsie Sioux. (Hands Up to the Ceiling" fromOut of the Woods, 2007)
I've been compared a lot to Siouxsie, and I am sure it must be there
Massive Attack have always looked outside the core trio for musical collaborations with kindred spirits, not just in old grooves but also in the flesh. Former Cocteau Twin Elizabeth Frazer was one: now living in Bristol, she'd previously been sounded out before Protection but hadn't responded. Did she say why? "Have you met Liz?" 3D splutters with laughter. "She's a very excitable and quite mad in the best way. She threw a million words into the air and we tried to grab a few and work out what she meant. Me and Mush met her in Sainsbury's and invited her up to the studio. There was this nerve-wracking moment before she arrived and I said, It's really sterile in here, let's light some candles in here and make it funky for her. She loved our Siouxsie and the banshees sample off 'Metal Postcard' — she'd just had this Siouxsie and the Banshees tattoo removed from her arm.
Artists I love, like Siouxsie Sioux and Patti Smith, have such radically different ways of embodying femininity, but they're both amazing punk women.
Des sixties, je retiens Jimi Hendrix que me faisait écouter mon père. Puis, dans les années septante, the Slits, que j'adorais, Siouxsie and the Banshees (dont elle porte le T-shirt), Joy Division Les années quatre-vingt avec Yazoo et Eurythmics New Order aussi.Off the 60s, I select Jimi Hendrix that my father made me discover. Then in the 1970s, the Slits that I loved, Siouxsie and the Banshees (whom she wore a T-shirt, note of the author), Joy Division. The 80s with Yazoo and Eurythmics, also New Order.
Kelley had a girlfriend in California who sent us tapes of James Blood Ulmer, Undertones, Costello, Sex Pistols, Siouxsie ... A Dayton, it was like to live in Russia, these cassettes were our most precious, the only link with civilization. (original version in french: Kelley avait une copine en Californie qui nous envoyait des cassettes de James Blood Ulmer, des Undertones, de Costello, des Sex Pistols, de Siouxsie ... A Dayton, on avait l'impression de vivre en Russie, que ces cassettes étaient notre bien le plus précieux, le seul lien avec la civilisation)
It's little surprise they think as they do, given that the pair namecheck Sonic Youth, Kate Bush, Le Tigre and Siouxsie and the Banshees (Karin) and hard techno, UK grime and southern US rap (Olof) as influences.
Siouxsie is my hero
"Hong Kong Garden" It's such a classic song. I remember meeting Siouxsie once, like five years ago, and she just looked incredible. She's so magical. This song, it's almost super-pop, it still sounds so new to me.
I love Debbie Harry and Siouxsie Sioux.
I found myself, over the last year-and-a-half, in my super-Siouxsie and the Banshees moment—that's all I was listening to
Yodeling [...] I learned how to do it. Then over the years there were artists like Sinéad O'Connor and Siouxsie from Siouxsie and the Banshees and even Peter Harvey was doing it. It was something that you could work into The Cranberries' format because a lot of that was used in religious Irish music
Drawn together by a mutual love of The Beatles, Billie Holiday, Charles Mingus, Iggy Pop, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Captain Beefheart, Ravi Shankar, Frederic Chopin and Olivier Messaien, founders Jennifer Charles and Oren Bloedow...
I was also inspired by more contemporary artists like Nick Cave, Siouxsie... (J'ai aussi été inspirée par des artistes plus contemporains qui sont apparus quand j'étais plus jeune, comme [...] Nick Cave, [...] Siouxsie et The Captain)
I like very much Siouxsie and The Banshees, Annie Lennox et Missy Elliott
When I discovered Karen O at the age of 15, it was one of the first times I realised women had a place in experimental music – this was before I found out about Siouxsie and the Banshees
we listened to 'Siouxsie and the Banshees' non-stop, but it wasn't like they were singing about female empowerment or talking about gender in any way that helped us out.
When I was maybe about 13, I finally had a best friend. We loved The Smiths and The Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees together
Seeing Siouxsie & The Banshees on TV changed Gillian Gilbert's life. "Me dad always says to us, 'You changed as soon as you saw Siouxsie & The Banshees on television'... Watching the Sex Pistols, Siouxsie & The Banshees and a group called Penetration - I just wanted to be in a band!
Alison Goldfrapp selects Siouxsie's "Spellbound" while being interviewed by Lauren Laverne
Then some Siouxsie and the Banshees loving - Spellbound
Siouxsie Sioux was another [good role model] and she still looks pretty amazing actually, I saw her not that long ago.
I went to see Siouxsie and the Banshees. When she was doing Creatures.
I'm lucky that there seems to be a massive revival in female performers. My icons were always women like Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks and Siouxsie Sioux. Who wouldn't be proud to carry on that tradition?
I loved doing the XFM 100 Club gig, [...] the Siouxsie link!
I also really love [...] Siouxsie and the Banshees –Hyæna.
A lot of artists have inspired me: Wendy O. Williams, Poly Styrene, definitely Debbie Harry, and Siouxsie Sioux
I recently turned my daughter on to Siouxsie & The Banshee's, she loves Siouxsie, she says "I want to meet her
Siouxsie and the Banshees – The Last Beat of My Heart (Live in 1991) The studio version is great, but this performance is stunning. The march is more powerful, the accordion, the guitar, the drums, and most importantly, her voice, are in their most perfect and effective places.
Pour moi, il n'y a pas tant de différences que ça entre les Bad Brains, Siouxsie, Tchaïkovski et Bartók. Ils ont tous la même force, font preuve de la même violence...
When I was a teenager, I'd listen to a radio program that happened late Sunday nights that featured music that wasn't getting played anywhere else. I would tape the shows onto a cassette and listen to them over and over. The Birthday Party, and Siouxsie Sioux.
Girlpool's Current Mood playlist — titled Fantasie deals with the idea that art transcends time, and that emotions are always the same, no matter where you look at them in history. On the Fantasie playlist, compiled by Tividad, newer songs [...] rub shoulders with [...] Siouxsie and the Banshees' 'Kiss Them For Me'.
I was listening: Siouxsie and the Banshees, Tom Petty, hip-hop, the Replacements'
Everybody has their own musical path. For me, it was always thrilling to meet, like, my musical heroes. For me it was running into Siouxsie Sioux in a bar in London. I was actually really frightened to approach her [...] But my friends were like, "Just go and tell her how much you admire her", so I did. I rolled right up on her and Budgie and was like, "Hi I'm Billie Ray Martin, and I love your music so much.
D'un point de vue féminin, je me sens plus proche des premiers tubes d'Eurythmics ou de la discographie de Siouxsie and the Banshees, par exemple. (From a female view, I feel akin to Eurythmics's early hits or Siouxsie and the Banshees' discography for instance.)
Q: There is a cover of 'Hong Kong Garden' by Siouxsie & The Banshees on your forthcoming album. Have you always been a fan of Siouxsie? A:Yes, it's one of my favourite songs
Q: Was the inclusion of Siouxsie and the Banshees' 'Hong Kong Garden' in anyway a tribute? A: Ah... well, I love the song
my heroes Bowie, Depeche, Iggy, Siouxsie, Tangerine Dream, Nick Cave
I'm the kind of person — whatever's touching me, I'll go out and explore. When I was making this record, and we were in the '90s, I could have went Silver Apples, Siouxsie and the Banshees.
Nina Simone never won a Grammy. Patti Smith never won a Grammy. Siouxsie Sioux, too. The Grammys are always fun to watch, but you really gotta look elsewhere if you want to hear good music.
St. Vincent selected "Kiss Them for Me" by Siouxsie and the Banshees
I wish we could have talked more about bands like ... Siouxsie and the Banshees... So if anybody sees this article, also go check out ... Siouxsie
There's something so delicious about the Siouxsie catalogue and The Creatures' catalogue... The Creatures were a band that I loved so much... I don't think anyone could ever give Siouxsie enough credit for what she's done.
Siouxsie and the Banshees - One of my favourite voices of all time, guy or girl. I have a lot of respect for Siouxsie and she's given me a lot of inspiration over the years
In general, the palette was... Siouxsie [Sioux], PJ [Harvey], Portishead
In the past 20 to 30 years there's been a lot more women who've inspired what I do, Kate Bush or Sade; Siouxsie & the Banshees
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