Hyeana

Siouxsie & The Banshees | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Geffen Records
• ASIN: B000000OPE
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #78,422 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Glittering Prize, November 12, 2002

By 

Chris D. (Ocean Grove, NJ) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hyeana (Audio CD)

"Hyæna" was the first Siouxsie album I ever bought, after hearing "Dazzle" on the radio. I was soon blown away by the rest of the tracks as well.

The album is an odd array of moods and styles. "Dazzle" - the opening track - is an over-the-top swirl of guitars, rattling percussion and strings. It's followed by "We Hunger", a tormented and frantic bit of misery with wailing, discordant guitars and tribal beats. Then they shift gears on "Take Me Back", a spare, stripped-down song in which the musical accompaniment consists of an organ and brush-style drums. The fourth track - "Belladonna" - prominently features an oboe, and is a rather pretty song. The rest of the album continues shifting around the same way - Spanish-style songs, Dervish-style songs, a Beatles cover - but, somehow, they manage to make it all fit together wonderfully.

"Hyæna" is in the psychedelic, experimental vein of "A Kiss In The Dreamhouse" in its variety of sounds and textures. As others have noted, The Cure's Robert Smith handled the guitar work on "Hyæna", and does an excellent job. "The Top", which The Cure released the same year as "Hyæna", is rather similar in style and worth checking out as well. Strange, atmospheric, moody and often bizarre, "Hyæna" is one of my favorite Siouxsie albums and definitely worth picking up (the generally disliked "Tinderbox" remains my favorite - go figure).

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Almost a classic, May 24, 2004

By 

Pieter "Toypom" (Johannesburg) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Hyeana (Audio CD)

Although not generally considered to be amongst this seminal punk band's top 5 albums, Hyaena contains at least four magical moments. As such, it is not a bad album at all and in fact I like it more now than when it was released in the middle 1980s.

The first is the swirling Dazzle, a soaring melodic rock ballad that all by itself makes the album worthwhile. Swimming Horses is another classic of post punk psychedelic rock, quite an atmospheric number. Then there's their cover of The Beatles' Dear Prudence, where the arrangement and Siouxsie's voice turn a love song into an eerie noire affair.

We Hunger has a bubbling, jerky rhythmic backdrop whilst Take Me Back is a sparse, mid tempo ballad. Belladonna is another of my favorites and the 4th masterpiece of the album with its beautiful melody line and poignant mood. Bring Me The Head Of The Preacher Man is a long brooding piece of dense instrumentation and claustrophobic airs and Running Town has some interesting tempo changes and stunning guitar playing.

Hyaena has stood the test of time very well. The aforementioned great songs, especially Dazzle, Belladonna and Swimming Horses, rank amongst this legendary band's best songs. Fans of Siouxsie And The Banshees might also like Children Of God by Swans and the albums Thirteen Masks or Sacrificial Cake by Jarboe.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another Classic, March 13, 2000

By 

[e-mail] - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hyeana (Audio CD)

It initially took the Banshees over a year to complete this album and is another excellent release though muddled at times. The disc opens with "Dazzle" and right away gets your attention. The strings have a fury unmatched by guitars ( originally Siouxsie wrote the string section on her toy piano! ). "We Hunger" is an unassuming Banshees song though Sioux's vocal performance is flawless. "Take Me Back" is the weakest song on the album though that doesn't mean it's a bad song, it just sounds unfinished. "Belladonna" is a keyboard-heavy ballad which is a taste of future songs. In "Swimming Horses" you can hear the influence that Robert Smith has on the group, one of their finest moments. The Banshees interpretation of the minimal Beatles track "Dear Prudence" is utterly breathtaking. They took a pretty though forgettable song and produced a classic. "Bring Me The Head Of The Preacher Man" is without a doubt one of the most underrated Banshee songs ever. Sioux's vocal layerings and Budgie's pounding along with the fine acoustic guitar shows a progression from "Spellbound". "Running Town" is a good guitar pop song while "Pointing Bone" just isn't quite on it's level. The album closes with "Blow The House Down". Where "Dazzle" demonstrated the power of strings "Blow The House Down" explodes with a cacophonous woodwind arrangement, the track also contains one of Budgie's most amazing percussive arrangements. Just one of many examples of the brilliance of the Banshees.