Hyæna
| Untitled | |
|---|---|
Hyæna is the sixth studio album by English post-punk band Siouxsie and the Banshees, released in 1984. It was re-issued, remastered, and expanded in 2009. In the United States, Hyæna was the first Banshees album to be released on a major label – Geffen Records (now sister label to their then-UK label, Polydor).
Prior to the release of the album, "Dear Prudence" became the band's biggest hit in the UK, reaching number 3 in September of the previous year.[1] The song was intended to be a stand-alone single in Europe and as it was not issued in North America, it later only appeared on the American version of Hyæna.
It is the only studio album guitarist Robert Smith of The Cure composed and recorded with the Banshees.
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
The album received both positive reviews and mixed reviews upon release but however, Melody Maker, wrote:
"Parts of it are so wistfully carefree that it's impossible not to credit Robert Smith as the talisman - his irreverence seems to course through everything. "Take Me Back" is the Banshees rollicking like some primitive jazz combo drunk on the Good Lord's wine. On "Belladonna", Smith's liquid guitar relaxes Sioux to the extent that she drops a few masks to reveal her vulnerability. When the siren sings "daylight devours your unguarded hours", she's illuminating her own predicament so acutely it surely can't be coincidence. "Dazzle", too, is naively daring: Siouxsie's voice, framed alone against the firmament of strings. It could be Lloyd Webber's Cats or something by Vaughn Williams. You can get impressed, wrapped up and lost in this.[3]
Retrospectively, Stephen Cook gave a four and a half star rating to Hyæna and wrote:
"the emphasis here is on layered arrangements and pop tunes disguised as art-house production numbers ("Dazzle"); tasteful horn and keyboard parts expand the group's guitar-dominated sound and provide Siouxsie with an airy and dreamlike backdrop in which to fully display her considerable vocal talents."[2]
When the album was re-issued, The Quietus wrote a positive review and said :
"it was "their most experimental work, Smith's presence in keenly felt on the disciplined execution of the grandiose "Dazzle" or the starkly seductive "Swimming Horses". But the real treasures were buried deep within the album. The lysergic Spaghetti Western twang of "Bring Me The Head Of The Preacher Man" is evocative in its execution while the densely epic "Blow The House Down" finds Smith indelibly stamping his mark on the track courtesy of some his finest guitar work."[4]
Track listing
- 1984 UK version
All music composed by Siouxsie and the Banshees.
All lyrics are written by Siouxsie Sioux, except where noted
| No. | Title | Lyrics | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Dazzle" | 5:30 | |
| 2. | "We Hunger" | 3:31 | |
| 3. | "Take Me Back" | 3:03 | |
| 4. | "Belladonna" | Severin | 4:30 |
| 5. | "Swimming Horses" | 4:06 | |
| 6. | "Bring Me the Head of the Preacher Man" | Severin | 4:06 |
| 7. | "Running Town" | 4:04 | |
| 8. | "Pointing Bone" | Severin | 3:49 |
| 9. | "Blow the House Down" | 6:59 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Dazzle" | ||
| 2. | "We Hunger" | ||
| 3. | "Take Me Back" | ||
| 4. | "Belladonna" | ||
| 5. | "Swimming Horses" | ||
| 6. | "Dear Prudence" | John Lennon and Paul McCartney | |
| 7. | "Bring Me the Head of the Preacher Man" | ||
| 8. | "Running Town" | ||
| 9. | "Pointing Bone" | ||
| 10. | "Blow the House Down" |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 11. | "Dear Prudence" | |
| 12. | "Dazzle (Glamour Mix)" | |
| 13. | "Baby Piano (Part One - Unreleased Track)" | |
| 14. | "Baby Piano (Part Two - Unreleased Track)" |
The two "Baby Piano" tracks are, respectively, a short piano demo of "Dazzle" and the string backing to the album version of the song.
Personnel
- Siouxsie Sioux – vocals
- Steven Severin – electric bass and keyboards
- Budgie – drums, percussion, and marimba
- Robert Smith – guitars and keyboards
- Additional personnel
- Robin Canter – woodwind
- The Chandos Players – strings
- Mike Hedges – producer and engineer
- David Kemp – assistant engineer
- Siouxsie and the Banshees – producers
References
- ^ Brian Johns (1989). Entranced: the Siouxsie and the Banshees story. Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-7119-1773-b.
- ^ a b Stephen Cook. "Hyaena - Siouxsie and the Banshees". Allmusic. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
- ^ Steve Sutherland. "Hyæna review". Melody Maker (9 June 1984).
- ^ Julian Marszalek (10 April 2009). "Siouxsie & the Banshees reissues: A kiss in the Dreamhouse, Nocturne, Hyæna, Tinderbox". Thequietus.com. Retrieved 19 July 2012.