the Creatures

The Creatures were an English band formed in 1981 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and drummer Budgie both members of the group Siouxsie and the Banshees. Their music, initially based on drums and voice, evolved over the years. The Creatures released their first EP '' Wild Things'' in 1981. On their debut album '' Feast'' (1983) including a UK top 25 single " Miss the Girl", the band embraced exotica while keeping percussion as the main instrument.Raggett, Ned
"''Feast'' – review"
Allmusic. Retrieved 10-8-2015 On their second album ''Boomerang'' (1989) which was widely critically acclaimed, the duo married their music with blues and jazz; '' Uncut'' magazine would later rank ''Boomerang'' at number 184 in their list of "the 500 Greatest Albums of the 1980s". In the late 1990s, they developed a more urban sound on '' Anima Animus''; ''The Times'' then described their music as "adventurous art rock built around Siouxsie's extraordinary voice and drummer Budgie's battery of percussion". For their last album '' Hái!'' (2003), they returned to their roots while turning to east, with an ode to Japanese minimalism. They disbanded in 2005.

Their music was praised by Jeff Buckley, PJ Harvey,"7th January 2000 PJ selects her Top 10 Albums of 1999"
Pjharvey.net. 7 January 2000. Featuring The Creatures aka Siouxsie and Budgie with the LP ''Anima Animus''. Anohni, and name-checked by Neil Hannon of the Divine Comedy.

Formation and ''Wild Things'' EP (1981)

Singer Siouxsie Sioux and drummer Budgie created the Creatures in 1981 while rehearsing for Banshees' '' Juju'' album. During one session, they discovered by accident that the combination of just voice and drums suited the track "But Not Them". A studio session was organized with the aim of recording five songs. This project was released in the form of an EP titled '' Wild Things''. The title track was a reworking of a hit by the Troggs; the other numbers were Creatures compositions. The EP reached No. 24 in the UK Singles Chart and the pair performed "Mad-Eyed Screamer" on ''Top of the Pops''.

''Feast'' (1983)

In 1983, the Creatures released their first full-length album, '' Feast''. The band had decided where to record the album by randomly placing a pin on a map of the world. The result was Hawaii, which led to the Lamalani Hula Academy Hawaiian Chanters being featured on some tracks. Musically, the album was steeped in exotica and tropical backdrops. During the week of its release, the band were on the front cover of both ''Melody Maker'' and ''NME''. ''Melody Maker'' described ''Feast'' as "an album of filtered brilliance, fertile, sensual and erotic", while ''NME'' said, "The humours of Sioux's frosty larynx are nakedly outlined against skins of sometimes fabulous quality". The album reached No. 17 in the UK Albums Chart. The single " Miss the Girl" which peaked at number 21 in the UK chart, took its inspiration from the book '' Crash'' by J. G. Ballard. Shortly after its exit from the charts, a follow-up, " Right Now", was recorded, a song that was initially performed by Mel Tormé. The Creatures revamped it by adding a brass section, and it became their most successful single, reaching the top 15.

''Boomerang'' (1989–1990)

The Creatures reconvened six years later. Siouxsie and Budgie went to a stone barn in Jerez, Andalucia, Spain to record ''Boomerang'', an album which blended their music with blues, jazz, flamenco and electronia. Brass arrangements featured on some tracks and Anton Corbijn took colour pictures for the sleeve. The record received widespread critical acclaim. ''NME'' wrote: "It's a rich and unsettling landscape of exotica". One of the bluesier songs on ''Boomerang'', "Killing Time", was later covered live by Jeff Buckley. On 4 December 1989, the band performed live " Standing There" and "You!" with a brass section for UK TV Channel 4's "Big World Cafe". The Creatures then rehearsed with other musicians to play a rearranged version of "Pluto Drive" with Budgie exceptionally on keyboards, for UK TV Show "One Hour with Jonathan Ross".

In the US, the single "Standing There" was popular on alternative radio stations, reaching No. 4 on the '' Billboard'' Modern Rock Tracks chart, staying in the top 10 for 14 weeks. " Fury Eyes" was remixed by Pascal Gabriel for a single release: "Fury Eyes" also received a lot of radio airplay on US alternative radio and reached number 12 on the ''Billboard'' Alternative Chart. During February and March 1990, the Creatures toured for the first time in the UK, Europe and the US: they chose to appear as a duo on stage helped with technology and sequencers.

Collaboration with John Cale and ''Eraser Cut'' EP (1996–1998)

When Siouxsie and the Banshees ended in 1996, the Creatures had already begun composing new material. At the same time, the long-out-of-print ''Wild Things'' EP and ''Feast'' album were remastered and re-released through the compilation '' A Bestiary Of''.

In February 1998, former Velvet Underground member John Cale, then organizing the "With a Little Help from My Friends" festival at the Paradiso in Amsterdam, contacted the Creatures for a collaboration. The concert, shown on Dutch national television, featured an unreleased Creatures song, "Murdering Mouth", composed for the event and sung in duet with Cale. That night, the Creatures also premiered a live orchestra version of "I Was Me" with Cale on viola. In May, Siouxsie and Budgie appeared on British Television show " Later With Jools Holland" with two bass players on their side to perform live two other songs "Disconnected" and " Prettiest Thing" from the forthcoming album.

During that period, Siouxsie and Budgie created their own label, Sioux Records, and became an independent act. A stand-alone single, "Sad Cunt", was offered to attendees of two warm-up concerts in London in May prior to the North American tour. From June to August, the pair toured the United States as a double bill with John Cale, playing yet unreleased material: Siouxsie and Cale also sang several songs together each night. The ''LA Times'' reviewed the tour as an "inventive, spirited show", saying: "Cale and the Creatures’ inspired performance struck a perfect balance". An EP, '' Eraser Cut'' (an anagram of "Creatures"), then came out; '' Time Out'' described the songs as "short, sharp, percussive and infectiously atmospheric". In October, they promoted the single " 2nd Floor" with a video mostly shot in black and white.

''Anima Animus'' (1999–2002)

Early in 1999, the Creatures released '' Anima Animus'', their first studio album in just under a decade. Its urban sound with the introduction of guitars, and synthesizers laced with electronica, was a departure from ''Boomerang''s organic atmosphere. ''The Times'' wrote about ''Anima Animus'': "It's entrancing, hypnotic and inventive", and peer PJ Harvey later selected it in her 10 favourite albums released in 1999.
Other singles from the album were " Say" (dedicated to Billy Mackenzie) and "Prettiest Thing". The song "Another Planet" was included on the soundtrack to the film '' Lost in Space'' in a version radically reworked by Juno Reactor. Live albums ''Zulu'' (recorded in London in 1998) and ''Sequins in the Sun'' (recorded at the Glastonbury festival in 1999) were released on limited editions via the Creatures website.

In June, the Creatures appeared on Marc Almond's '' Open All Night''; Siouxsie duetted with Almond and Budgie added percussion on the track "Threat of Love". In late 1999, the remix album '' Hybrids'' was issued, featuring remixes by other acts including the Beloved.

In 2000, a compilation of unreleased ''Anima Animus''-era tracks was released as '' U.S. Retrace''. It featured the B-side "All She Could Ask For", which was the opening number for all their concerts during that period. Three one-track CDs – "Murdering Mouth" (live), "Rocket Ship" and "Red Wrapping Paper" – were distributed to fan club members.

''Hái!'' and break-up (2003–2004)

Siouxsie and Budgie returned with a full-length album, '' Hái!'', in 2003. The drum sessions were recorded in Japan less than 24 hours after the Banshees had completed their '' Seven Year Itch'' reunion tour. Budgie first worked with the Japanese taiko drummer Leonard Eto (previously of the Kodo Drummers): their spontaneous drum duet formed the basis of the album. The rest of the sessions were done in France over a period of several months. The single " Godzilla!" was described as "spookily brilliant" by ''NME'', and reviews were favourable for ''Hái!''. The opening track "Say Yes" was used during the trailer for the 2004 season of ''The Sopranos''.

In 2004, Siouxsie toured for the first time billed as a solo act, but with Budgie still as drummer and musical arranger. The setlists combined Banshees and Creatures songs. A live DVD called '' Dreamshow'' documented the last London concert of September 2004 performed with the Millennia Ensemble. Released in August 2005, this DVD reached No. 1 in the UK music DVD chart.

''Dreamshow'' was the last release by the pair, as Siouxsie announced publicly during a 2007 interview with ''The Sunday Times'' that she and Budgie had divorced.Cairns, Dan
''Siouxsie Sioux is back in bloom''
''The Sunday Times''. 26 August 2007

Discography

; Studio albums
*'' Feast'' (1983)
* ''Boomerang'' (1989)
* '' Anima Animus'' (1999)
* '' Hái!'' (2003)

References

Sources

* Budgie
The Creatures Biography
''The Creatures.com'' April 2000
*

Further reading

*

External links

The Creatures' videos (official channel) on Dailymotion
uploaded in the original 4:3 aspect ratio

The Creatures' VEVO – two videos only
uploaded in 16:9 aspect ratio

{{DEFAULTSORT:Creatures, The
Musical groups established in 1981
Musical groups disestablished in 2005
English electronic music duos
Polydor Records artists
Geffen Records artists
English new wave musical groups
English post-punk music groups
English alternative rock groups
English rock music duos
Siouxsie and the Banshees
Female-fronted musical groups
1981 establishments in England