"Slowdive" is a song by English

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...

band

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees were a British rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. They have been widely influential, both over their contemporaries and with later acts. ''Q'' magazine in ...

. It was released in 1982 by record label

Polydor Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

as the first single from the band's fifth studio album, ''

A Kiss in the Dreamhouse ''A Kiss in the Dreamhouse'' is the fifth studio album by British rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees. It was released on 5 November 1982 by Polydor Records. The record marked a change of musical direction, as the group used strings for the first ...

''.

Music

The song (and the album) was representative of Siouxsie and the Banshees' more elaborate and experimental musical direction at the time. The overtones of the song were accentuated by a string section, including

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

s and a

cello The cello ( ; plural ''celli'' or ''cellos'') or violoncello ( ; ) is a Bow (music), bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), t ...

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

later described "Slowdive" as "a violin-colored

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

beat number" with "a catchy melodic hook". ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

s music critic Dave Simpson deemed it one of the band's very best recordings, noting that it "sounds like the lid being slowly released on a pressure cooker, as the band emerge from the black and flit from suspense to sensuality. They change course again musically, too, switching from brooding rock to psychedelic pop".

Release

"Slowdive" was released on 1 October 1982 by record label

. The song just missed becoming a top 40 hit, peaking at number 41 in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The song's release on 12" vinyl included an extended version (which would be released on the expanded, remastered edition of ''A Kiss in the Dreamhouse'' in 2009) and an instrumental version of the third track on ''Dreamhouse'', "Obsession", titled "Obsession II".

Music Video

The music video was directed by Clive Richardson and filmed in a hangar at the Isle of Dogs, London. The video is a performance video and shows the band in a large room lit up with a variety of concert-style spotlights. Siouxsie is shown swinging on a large trapeze while the other members of the band perform a dance routine on the floor below her. The dance routines were choreographed by Ginette Landray.

Legacy

The title of the song inspired the name of the band

Slowdive Slowdive is a British rock band that formed in Reading, Berkshire, in 1989. The band consists of Rachel Goswell on vocals and guitar, Neil Halstead on vocals and guitar, Christian Savill on guitar, Nick Chaplin on bass and Simon Scott on drum ...

in the early 1990s, as later confirmed by the latter's members in interviews. "Slowdive" was covered by

LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy, co-founder of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals, various instruments), Nancy Whang (synthesizer, keyboards, vocals), Pat Mahoney (dr ...

in January 2005 for an

XFM Radio X is a British National commercial radio station focused on alternative music, primarily indie rock, and owned by Global. Radio X launched in 1989 as a pirate radio station, a licensed London-wide station in 1997 and nationally in 2015 ...

radio session and was also released as the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record compan ...

of their "

Disco Infiltrator "Disco Infiltrator" is a song from the eponymous debut album by LCD Soundsystem. It was released on 6 June 2005 as the debut's sixth single. The song was written by LCD Soundsystem's frontman James Murphy and produced by Murphy and Tim Goldsworth ...

" single. “Slowdive” was a consistent part of LCD Soundsystem's live set in 2005, serving as the show closer.Doran, John. ''Soundsystem And Vision''. July 2005. now reproduced a
"Disco Infiltrated: An Early LCD Soundsystem Interview"
thequietus.com. retrieved 5 January 2016. "After a jaw dropping set that ended on a cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees’ ‘Slowdive’, one thing is fairly certain: Leeds’ relatively small Cockpit venue..."

Track listing

; 7" single ; 12" single

Personnel

; Siouxsie and the Banshees *

Siouxsie Sioux Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), known professionally as Siouxsie Sioux, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and record producer. She was the lead singer of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees (1976–1996). They released 11 ...

– vocals *

Steven Severin Steven Severin (born Steven John Bailey; 25 September 1955) is an English songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist and producer. He is best known as the bassist of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees which he co-founded in 1976. He took th ...

– six-string bass guitar *

John McGeoch John Alexander McGeoch (25 August 1955 – 4 March 2004) was a Scottish musician and songwriter. He is best known as the guitarist of the rock bands Magazine (1977-1980) and Siouxsie and the Banshees (1980-1982). He has been described as one o ...

– guitar *

Budgie Budgie may refer to: Arts * Budgie (album), ''Budgie'' (album), the debut album by the Welsh heavy metal band Budgie * Budgie (band), a Welsh heavy metal band from Cardiff * Budgie (musician) (born 1957), English drummer * Budgie (TV series), ''Bu ...

– drums, percussion, harmonica ; Additional personnel * Anne Stephenson – violin * Virginia Hewes – violin

References

{{Authority control 1982 singles Siouxsie and the Banshees songs Polydor Records singles Songs written by Siouxsie Sioux Songs written by Budgie (musician) Songs written by Steven Severin Songs written by John McGeoch 1982 songs