Alternative Press (November '98)

Cunning Stunts
Siouxsie and Budgie's Creatures Return
by Val C. Phoenix

Two years after they disbanded Siouxsie And The Banshees in the wake of punk nostalgia, Siouxsie Sioux and Budgie are concentrating on their drums-and-voice project The Creatures, only to find a music scene enveloped in an '80's revival. Chuckling, drummer Budgie recalls that when he and Siouxsie broke up the Banshees, they were fielding questions about the Sex Pistol's reformation, while on their recent U.S. tour with John Cale, it was questions about Bauhaus. "We're not living back in the past," he says.

Now living in France, he and Siouxsie have finished recording their third album as the Creatures, which has been a Banshee side project since 1981. Released from their U.S. and U.K. record contracts, the duo have formed their own label, Sioux Records, and released a new single, "Sad Cunt."

The jaunt with longtime hero Cale saw them collaborating on one another's songs, allowing them to realize a dream of performing the classic Velvet Underground song "Venus In Furs." "We had to really twist his arm to do that one," says Budgie, relishing the memory. As if to emphasize the Creatures' distance from the Banshees, the current line-up boasts two bassists, with samplers and sequencers handling guitar parts.

"It's in a state of constant reassessment and change," says Budgie, "and that's why the Creatures shouldn't be---and won't be---tied down to a particular sound or way of doing it."