Released on this day (18 July 1988): “Peek-A-Boo” by Siouxsie and the Banshees, the first single from their ninth studio album Peepshow. If – like me! - you are Gen X and were going to goth clubs and alternative nights in your youth, you definitely danced to this one at some point! As Piers Martin recalls in Uncut magazine, the jarring-but-catchy experimental song came about my accident: “producer Mike Hedges accidentally played their version of John Cale’s “Gun” [from their previous album Through the Looking Glass] backwards, creating a low-end stutter with a fluttering bass riff – the track’s backbone – over which Siouxsie wrote about women being exploited in softcore porn, dehumanised and stereotyped, establishing the voyeuristic theme of the album. [Martin] McGarrick’s sprightly accordion and Budgie’s parade-ground drumming, as well as the Banshees’ increasingly piratical get-up, lend the whole thing a proto-steampunk vibe – it’s futuristic and corny and remains utterly compelling.” Similarly, Ned Raggett of the AllMusic website praises “Peek-A-Boo” for “interpolating what sounded like the Charleston into hip-hop rhythms with a brilliant, choppy arrangement.” “Peek-A-Boo” is widely acclaimed and is one of the Banshees’ all-time highest charting singles on both sides of the Atlantic but was never a personal favourite: I admire how inventive it is but find it gimmicky and shrill! However, I love its art-y German Expressionist-style accompanying video. And I remember the ripple of excitement when Siouxsie dramatically emerged with her signature wild crimped mane cropped into a sleek Louise Brooks-inspired flapper bob. Now sing along with me! “Reeking like a pigsty / Peeling back and gagging free / Flaccid ego in your hand / Chokes on dry tears, can you understand?” Photo by Ebet Roberts.
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