A Kiss In The Dreamhouse

Siouxsie and the Bashees get obsessively, twistedly romantic.

Yeah, you heard me right - "A Kiss In The Dreamhouse" is filled with romantic ideals but turned on their heads in a topsy-turvy world where breaking into your would-be lover's house and rummaging through their belongings is an acceptable past-time.

Well, actually this isn't true at all - on "Obsession" Sioux sings menacingly about being that stalker, but at the same time becomes the harassed woman (I assume it's a woman) and shouts at the man to leave her alone. This must be one of the darker songs on the album, a departure away from the goth-rock of 1981's "Juju" (in my opinion the best album by this brilliant but unfortunately now defunct band) and a step towards the more experimental nature of "Kaleidoscope" and to a lesser extent "Peepshow".

"A Kiss In The Dreamhouse" is an appropriate title for an album that sounds more like a descent into a mad world of illusion rather than reality - in this world, anything could potentially happen. It's a little like being on some crazy roller-coaster - I can imagine being in a garden while the recorder on "Green Fingers" plays, the peaceful flat part where you feel safe but then there's a spiralling descent when "Circle" plays. This song in particular has a rather hypnotic effect. The same synth notes are played over and over and over throughout the song, only broken by Siouxsie Sioux's musings on corrupted children and teenage pregnancy. Actually, it could be a good song to play if you're desperate to get to sleep - it's rather like counting sheep. Pink sheep.

"She's A Carnival" gives a nod to their old form, being one of the more poppy songs on the album but giving into an almost creepy circus theme at the end - it gradually becomes faster and faster until you can imagine being there. "Painted Bird" wears a similar costume - this is probably the best song on the album, particularly if you're not quite sure where to start. It gives more room for guitar playing, and being, if you like, a "standard" pop-rock song.

I struggle to use the term "pop-rock" when describing anything by the Banshees though. You can't put them in one category, and every album is a ride on a different train. Rather like a goodie bag, all the treats are sweet but you never know what you're going to get. Luckily, you can't go wrong. Dive in.