Siouxsie - Jul 23 I’ve been a fan of all things Siouxsie since my mid teens and can safely put Siouxsie and the Banshees in my top 5 five all time favourite bands with The Creatures not far behind. When I last saw Siouxsie playing live back in 2008 (promoting her excellent debut solo album ‘Mantaray’), little did we know that it would be 15 years before she would tour again. Indeed, bar a couple of dates for Yoko Ono’s Meltdown festival in 2013 and a song recorded for the finale of the ‘Hannibal’ TV series in 2015, it looked as if Siouxsie had retired from the music business altogether.

However last December, it was announced that Siouxsie would be returning to the live arena to headline Latitude Festival later this month. Before we knew it, more and more dates were announced around Europe along with last month’s Cruel World festival in the US. As soon as the Mouth of the Tyne festival announced that Siouxsie would be the headline act for one of the four nights, I was making plans to return to my birthplace to spend a night with the Ice Queen.

I spent a lot of time in Tynemouth when I was growing up and the memories came flooding back as we left the impressive Metro station and headed to the main street to pick up some pre gig fish and chips. Well fed, we arrive at the entrance to the festival site to find a large queue patiently waiting to be let in. Not long after we are following the crowds along the winding path and through the castle gates towards the far corner of the peninsula where the stage has the imposing North Sea as a backdrop. As stage setups go this has got to be one of the most enchanting I have seen. Luckily it is also a warm sunny evening with the forecast thunderstorms not due until the following night when Paul Heaton would be gracing the festival stage.

Right on time, support band LYR take the stage in the early evening sun. Featuring the current Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage, LYR are an unusual prospect with a mixture of poetry readings infused with a prog rock background. There are times when the band seem to move into Mercury Rev territory when guitarist Richard Walters’ vocals are added to the spoken word parts. ‘Great Coat’ stands out and gets a good response whilst the closing song has an urgency that some of the other songs seem to lack.

LYR - Jul 23

It's still daylight when Siouxsie enters the stage (and will be for most of the set – this is the North East after all and at this time, of year it’s still light till 10.30) and the recent opener of ‘Nightshift’ is replaced by ‘Voices (in the Air)’. It’s a bold move opening with the B-side to the Banshees’ debut single, but it sets the scene for tonight with a good range of singles and album tracks from across Siouxsie’s career. Siouxsie is resplendent in her shades, flowing pale blue jumpsuit and long frock coat as she slinks across the stage. The trademark growls and yelps are all here as are the mischievous glances across to the band showing Siouxsie’s sense of fun is still very definitely present.

Siouxsie - Jul 23
Next up is ‘Israel’ and Siouxsie’s voice comes to the fore with one of the Banshees best loved songs. ‘Arabian Knights’ follows and the crowd is lapping it up. In the old days, Siouxsie was always one for playing the new material, decrying those who wanted the hits – tonight is all about celebrating the highlights of her career and it is a joyous occasion. ‘Here Comes that Day’ from 2008’s ‘Manteray’ album with its farting horns is a throbbing beast of a song. ‘Kiss Them for Me’ and its ode to Jayne Mansfield is a welcome addition from the later Banshees albums.

Siouxsie - Jul 23

Another big hitter follows in the form of ‘Dear Prudence’. I always considered the Banshees’ version to be better than The Beatles’ original and tonight it still sounds fantastic. It’s all purrs and seduction for ‘Face to Face’ as huge cat’s eyes stare out from the backdrop. Returning to her solo material, ‘Loveless’ is given a thunderous workout before the sunglasses finally come off and ‘Land’s End’ from the ‘Tinderbox’ album makes an appropriate appearance. It’s probably one of the least known tracks in the set tonight, but it still gets a rapturous response. ‘Cities in Dust’ sounded like nothing else when it came out and it remains one of my favourite songs – hearing it live again made my day.

Siouxsie - Jul 23 The band move to a selection of percussion instruments to run through the tribal beats of The Creatures ‘But Not Them’ from their first EP. I’d have loved to have seen more from The Creatures back catalogue tonight but it was always going to be hard to satisfy everyone’s wish list. Strapping on an electric blue guitar, Siouxsie joins the band to play through a magnificent ‘Sin in my Heart’. The Banshees had an incredible run of singles and the double header of Christine’ and ‘Happy House’ are hard to beat. The looks of glee on the faces around me say it all – this was all you could ask from a Siouxsie show.

Siouxsie - Jul 23

‘Into a Swan’ from the ‘Manteray’ album sees Siouxsie dancing expressively around the stage enthralling all before departing the stage. It’s still daylight in the North East and it feels too early for the show to end. Luckily Siouxsie returns after a short break and the unmistakable opening chords of ‘Spellbound’ get a huge cheer. An appearance on the latest episode of Stranger Things has raised the song’s profile once again demonstrating to the world what a timeless song it is. The end of the song sees the return of Siouxsie’s trademark high kicks, although the high heeled boots of old have been replaced by a pair of far more practical and comfortable trainers.

Siouxsie - Jul 23

With Siouxsie announcing a return to the very start, the piano notes of ‘Hong Kong Garden’ take the crowd back to their youth for one last time. Swinging her mike across the stage, Siouxsie still continues to enchant and it is sad to see her leave the stage for one last time.

For somebody who thought that they would never see Siouxsie again, tonight was incredibly special. Hearing those songs again had me grinning from ear to ear, and worshipping at the Church of Siouxsie a life affirming act. As we left the Priory we all knew we had seen something special – if you have the chance to see Siouxsie on this tour you will not be disappointed.

Siouxsie - Jul 23

I’d like to hope that this tour has reinvigorated Siouxsie’s creative juices and there will be new material coming. If not, I’ll still have a memory of this almost magical night to keep me smiling.

Siouxsie - Jul 23