A music podcast where we discuss our favorite albums, song by song. New episodes every other Tuesday.

178: Siouxsie and the Banshees - juju (1981)

Gothic in its purest sense is actually a very powerful, twisted genre, but the way it was being used by journalists — “goff” with a double “f” — always seemed to me to be about tacky harum scarum horror and I find that anything but scary. That wasn’t what we were about at all. There was something hippie about it too. Juju did have a horror theme to it, but it was psychological horror, nothing to do with ghosts and ghouls.

—Siouxsie Sioux

Rich got five pieces of candy! Libby got a chocolate bar! Mike got a rock. For this year’s Discord & Rhyme Halloween Spooktacular, Mike thought the time was right to sink our podcasting teeth into Siouxsie and the Banshees’ post-punk opus Juju, an album so seasonally appropriate there’s even a song called “Halloween” on it. With returning special guest and goth emerita Libby Cudmore along to help Mike and Rich understand this whole “goth” thing, Mike makes the case for why this dark masterpiece, filled with brilliant guitar work, inventive drumming, and the singular presence of Siouxsie Sioux, deserves your attention and probably influenced at least a few things you like, even if you’ve never set foot in a Hot Topic.

Miscellany

Siouxsie Sioux and Budgie also worked together as a side duo called the Creatures. Mike didn’t recommend anything by them in the episode because he’s still getting acquainted with their music, but the compilation A Bestiary Of (sadly out of print now but available to stream) demonstrates how interesting the two of them could be with just drums and vocals.
It should be noted that “Killing an Arab” by the Cure is a reference to The Stranger by Albert Camus and not an expression of hatred toward Arabs, but the title nonetheless caused enough controversy that the band has scrubbed the song from all streaming services.

Discord & Rhyme Roll Call

Mike DeFabio (host)

Rich Bunnell (moderator)

Libby Cudmore (special guest)

Juju tracklist

Spellbound
Into the Light
Arabian Knights
Halloween
Monitor
Night Shift
Sin in My Heart
Head Cut
Voodoo Dolly

Other clips used

Siouxsie and the Banshees:

Kiss Them for Me
Slowdive
Hong Kong Garden
Jigsaw Feeling
Christine
Happy House
Peek-A-Boo
The Last Beat of My Heart
Hall of Mirrors
Supernatural Thing
Voodoo Dolly (Nocturne version)
You're Lost Little Girl
Red Light
Green Fingers
Dazzle
This Town Ain't Big Enough for the Both of Us
Face to Face
Spellbound (12" Mix)

Others:

Cocteau Twins - In Our Angelhood
PJ Harvey - The Sky Lit Up
The Cure - Killing an Arab
Johann Sebastian Bach - Toccata and Fugue in D Minor
Can - Mother Sky
The Fall - Wings
Real McCoy - Another Night
Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock
T.S.O.L. - Code Blue
Led Zeppelin - Kashmir
Wayfarer - Night Shift
New Order - Sunrise
Killing Joke - Dominator
The Fall - L.A.
The Birthday Party - Release the Bats
The Doors - The End
Alice Cooper - Black Juju
Pink Floyd - Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun (Ummagumma version)
Magazine - The Light Pours Out of Me

Band/album personnel

Siouxsie Sioux – vocals, guitar (7)
Steven Severin – bass guitar
Budgie – drums, percussion
John McGeoch – guitar
Nigel Gray – production

Credits

“Discord & Rhyme (theme),” composed by the Other Leading Brand, contains elements of:

Duran Duran - Hungry Like the Wolf
Amon Düül II - Dehypnotized Toothpaste
The Dukes of Stratosphear - What in the World?? ...
Faith No More - Midlife Crisis
Herbie Hancock - Hornets
Kraftwerk - Autobahn
Talking Heads - Seen and Not Seen
Siouxsie and the Banshees - Night Shift (this episode only)

You can buy or stream Juju and other albums by Siouxsie and the Banshees at your local record store, or the usual suspects such as Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, and Amazon. Follow Discord & Rhyme on Instagram and BlueSky @DiscordPod for news, updates, and other random stuff. Editing is by Rich Bunnell, and special thanks to our own Mike DeFabio, the Other Leading Brand, for production and original music. See you next album, and keep as cool as you can.