One of the most influential and creative bands in the post-punk period, Siouxsie and the Banshees were a unique force who made an asset out of their various shape-shifting line ups of great innovative players. Siouxsie may have been the icon with the vision but each unique line up of the band were game changers in their own right from the classic first album team of Siouxise, Severin, John McKay and Kenny Morris whose stark soundscapes were like no other and arguably sparked the so called ‘goth’ scene before imploding on the second album tour. Instead of crashing and burning, the inner core of Siouxsie and Severin continued within weeks with northern renegade Budgie on drums and Robert Smith and then John McGeoch on guitar.

On a fast-forward out of St Helens, Budgie already had a great post-punk form, having played in Liverpool’s legendary Big In Japan and then the Slits, with his drumming making sense of that band’s wildfire creativity. His stint in the Banshees saw him part of the band’s golden chart period, where their psychedelic post-punk pop defied categorisation and rewrote the rule book, and his side project with Siouxsie, the Creatures, that very much had a life of its own with its percussive flurries and stark compelling vocals.

Not only did he and Siouxsie create thrilling soundscapes, but they were also married for several years, which Budgie documents in his recent book ‘The Absence’, which details this musical and life journey, navigating some of the great female icons of the period, which he explains in depth to John Robb in this interview.