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Say ‘Hái’ to Siouxsie Sioux and her running mate - and opposite number - Budgie. You know you want to...

Hái! by The Creatures

When Siouxsie & The Banshees’s Seven Year Itch Tour ended in Japan, 18 August 2002 it marked the end of an era. Twenty four hours later an impromptu session in a Tokyo recording studio heralded the beginning of something new - yet at the same time, strangely familiar...

"No more maybe, no more could be, say yes!..." - Siouxsie Sioux.

Siouxsie & Budgie return as their alter-egos, The Creatures with an emphatically titled new album Hái! Translated, the title of this self-produced Anglo-Japanese fusion means ‘Yes!’ and is released on their very own label, Sioux Records.

Minimalism

As mysterious as the serene yet sensual beauty of the cover image by Japanese artist Kimiko Yoshida, Hái! is an album of atmospheric, sublime minimalism?

Yet as Siouxsie’s vocals soar over Budgie’s daredevil drums, synchronised to the pulsing Taiko rhythms of ex-Kodo drummer Leonard Eto, Hái! creates a cinematic roar that would rival that of Japan’s most famous movie monster, Godzilla! whose paean from Siouxsie is the first single to be taken from the new long-player.

Story Of Hái!

The story of Hái! began on the stormy Tokyo morning when fate brought Budgie and Taiko drum master Leonard Eto together for the first time. The ensuing drumming frenzy forms the backbone of the album. Siouxsie says: "I was enthralled as I watched the coming together of these two kindred spirits. Words and melodies came to me immediately but mindful of breaking the spell, I had to store my inspiration until we got back to France."

Continuing a pioneering journey that began with The Creatures’ recording their first album Feast in Hawaii (1983), Boomerang in Spain (1989) and Anima Animu’ in France (1999), Hái! threads together a characteristically diverse, eclectic mix of sources. The album is inspired by the delicate snowfall imagery of Akira Kurosawa’s Ikiru (1952), the vibrancy of Tokyo’s Roppongi district and the ancient Shinto shrines and tranquil shores of Lake Ashi.

Striking, Beautiful

From the opening semi-cicada drone of Say Yes (not a cover of the Comet Gain track of the same name, by the way), we are exposed to the cinematic assault of Around The World and Seven Tears, charmed by the B-movie humour of Godzilla and seduced by the shamanic chant of Imagoro. Following the sexual twist of Tourniquet, we’re drawn into the strikingly beautiful fatalism of Further Nearer, languish in the poignant isolation of City Island, before finally being transported on the Hokusai wave of optimism that is Tantara!

The full album track listing looks like this:

1. Say Yes!
2. Around The World
3. Seven Tears
4. Godzilla
5. Imagoro
6. Tourniquet
7. Further Nearer
8. City Island
9. Tantara!

If Budgie’s drums are the beating heart of The Creatures, then Siouxsie’s voice is the lifeblood, capable of the same ground–shaking dynamism. It is also, as is evident on Hái!, an increasingly subtle and uniquely entrancing instrument.

Budgie says of the latest extraordinary chapter in the history of this great band: "The spirit of Japan has touched our souls and a new chapter in the story of ‘The Creatures’ has begun...The Creatures are primal; it’s our guts, our deepest instincts coming through."

Siouxsie Soux - a selected discography:

The Scream (1978) – Featuring: Pure; Jigsaw Feeling; Overground; Carcass; Helter Skelter; Mirage; Metal Postcard; Nicotine Stain; Suburban Relapse and Switch.

Join Hands (1978) - Poppy Day; Regal Zone; Placebo Effect; Icon; Premature Burial; Playground Twist; Mother - Oh Mein Papa and The Lord's Prayer.

Kaleidoscope (1980) – Produced by Nigel Grey, the band and Siouxsie, Kaleidoscope was released by Geffen records – features: Happy House; Tenant; Trophy; Hybrid; Clockface; Lunar Camel; Christine; Desert Kisses; Red Light; Paradise Place and Skin.

Once Upon A Time/The Singles (1981) – Featuring: Hong Kong Garden; Mirage; The Staircase (Mystery); Playground Twist; Love in a Void; Happy House; Christine; Israel; Spellbound and the quite wonderful Arabian Knights.

Live Banshees - Siouxsie and the gang - still showing the competiton how it's done, after 25 years - on DVD.

For more information about The Creatures, visit their very own website - which includes an extensive discography, news section and as complete a biographical run down on Siouxsie and Budgie as any creature of the night could ever wish for - here.

Hái is out now - as either a straight CD, CD with bonus disc, CD with bonus DVD and as a vinyl format, all on Sioux Records.

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