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| 2014 cover |
release date: Mar. 2, 1987
format: cd (2014 remaster)
[album rate: 3,5 / 5] [3,58]
producer: Mike Hedges, Siouxsie and the Banshees
label: Polydor Records - nationality: England, UK
Track highlights: 1. "This Town Ain't Big Enough for Both of Us" (Sparks) - 2. "Hall of Mirrors" (Kraftwerk) - 4. "This Wheel's on Fire" (The Band) - 5. "Strange Fruit" (Billie Holiday) - 7. "The Passenger" (Iggy Pop)
8th studio album by Siouxsie and the Banshees (stylised: Siouxsie & The Banshees) following Tinderbox (Apr. 1986) is produced in collaboration with Mike Hedges, who has worked on/off with the band since A Kiss in the Dreamhouse (1982), where he worked as sound engineer. This new collection consists of cover songs exclusively, and it's only the band's second but also already its final with (new) guitarist John Valentine Carruthers.
After having spent a relatively long time writing, composing and recording the '86 album, the band wanted an easier and more spontaneous approach to the studio work, and they therefore selected a collection of tracks of other artists they have played live or just felt like honouring for being musical inspirations. The title of the album is taken from Lewis Carroll's novel with the same title, which btw. is the continuation of "Alice in Wonderland" - that very title was previously inspiration to the band's own label, which is simply named Wonderland.
Stylistically, the album falls somewhat outside of what usually characterises the band's music, much to the same extent as was the case with the single "Dear Prudence" (1983) - a Beatles cover, which resulted in positive feedback from reviewers and fans. At first listen the album may turn out a bit of a disappointment, but The Banshees' versions of very diverse songs have an original quality that extents the scope of each song in that they are still recognisable classics - there is an original cut left - and on the other hand they have been adapted to the band's soundscape. It may take several listens to sense how tracks with such different origins nevertheless have a common basic tone. One of the more recent changes to band's output is a greater musical complexity, which is partly conveyed by the presence of strings - something which admittedly was also used on Tinderbox. British composer Jocelyn Pook features on viola and multi-instrumentalist Martin McCarrick, who is yet to be a future band member, effectively from the successor Peepshow (1988), he is credited all string arranegements and also plays cello and keyboards.
Siouxsie Sioux and Steven Severin are the only two remaining members from the formative years, while drummer Budgie has been a regular since the band's third album Kaleidoscope (1980). However, it's far from a band secret that over the years they have had more than ordinary difficulty in holding on to their changing guitarists for a longer period, and after this, the band's newest guitarist, John Carruthers, was released from the band, who then decided to continue as a trio - without a stable guitarist.
The 2014 edition comes with four bonus tracks, two of which are remix versions of tracks #4 and #7.
This is a fine and different work from the band.
[ allmusic.com 3 / 5 stars ]
