Face to Face (Siouxsie and the Banshees song)
"Face to Face" | ||||
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Single by Siouxsie and the Banshees | ||||
from the album Batman Returns | ||||
B-side |
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Released | 13 July 1992[1] | |||
Recorded | 1992 | |||
Length | 4:17 | |||
Label |
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Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) | Stephen Hague | |||
Siouxsie and the Banshees singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Face to Face" on YouTube | ||||
Siouxsie Sioux singles chronology | ||||
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"Face to Face" is a song recorded by English rock band
In the US, tension between people working at the film studio division of
Music and background
The song featured strings which build to a dramatic conclusion. Lyrically, the song makes indirect references to the film's characters Bruce Wayne/Batman played by Michael Keaton, and Selina Kyle/Catwoman played by Michelle Pfeiffer. "Face to Face" was heard in the film during a ballroom scene in which the characters dance together, not realising that, as their alter-egos (Batman and Catwoman), they are enemies. The lyrics reflected the characters' conflict ("...Cheek to cheek / the bitter sweet / commit your crime / in your deadly time / It's too divine / I want to bend / I want this bliss / but something says I must resist..."). At one point, lead singer Siouxsie Sioux can be heard purring like a cat, a reference to Catwoman. Tim Burton requested the Banshees to write the song of the film: "I've always been a fan – Siouxsie is one of very few women who can create a realistic primal cat sound".[3]
The recording sessions took place at Real World studios in
Release
In the US, the song was first included on the remixed the song, issued as "Face to Face (Catatonic Mix)".
"Face to Face" peaked at No. 21 in the
Critical reception
At the time of its release as a single, the Stud Brothers wrote in Melody Maker: "It's a slow, heavily orchestral & sensuously tense piece with Siouxsie first tapt, then cracked and finally spiralling off into the ether".[6]
Promotional video
Two versions of the music video picturing Siouxsie surrounded with cats were made: the video broadcast on music channels also included a few shots from the movie with Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman.[7] Burton initially wanted to direct the video but had to cancel after Warner Bros. asked for a new sequence to change the end of the movie. Burton's assistant Neil Abramson stepped in and "followed Burton's plan to match the video to the film".[8]
Track listing
UK 7" single
- "Face to Face"
- "I Could Be Again"
- also released on cassette
UK 12" picture disc single
- "Face to Face (Catatonic Mix)" *
- "I Could Be Again"
- "Hothead"
UK CD single (Available as a limited edition foldout digipak)
- "Face to Face"
- "I Could Be Again"
- "Hothead"
- "Face to Face (Catatonic Mix)" *
(* Mixed by 808 State)
US cassette single
- "Face to Face"
- "Sea Of Light"
Charts
Chart (1992) | Peak position |
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Swedish Singles Chart | 23 |
UK Singles Chart
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21 |
US Modern Rock Tracks
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7 |
References
- ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 11 July 1992. p. 19.
- ^ "Fax O on M6 channel [interview]". YouTube. January 1995. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
- ^ Schwartz, Missy (17 December 2004). "Sioux City; New-wave goddess Siouxsie Sioux led the way for kick-ass frontwomen with bold style. And the Queen Banshee is still wailing". Entertainment Weekly.
- Warner Home Video
- ^ "Siouxsie & the Banshees [uk charts]". officialcharts.com. Retrieved 29 April 2013.
- ^ The Stud Brothers. Melody Maker. 11 July 1992.
- ^ "Batman Returns' promotional video: Face to Face by Siouxsie and the Banshees". YouTube. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
- ^ Loder, Kurt. "MTV News Siouxsie and the Banshees Face to Face (Video Report). Youtube. July 1992. Retrieved 21 November 2018.