If Siouxsie Sioux was the dark, feline, icy ying of female punk, then Poly Styrene was the awkward, loud and colourful yang.
Poly, born Marianne Elliot-Said and the former singer with the X-Ray Spex, has died at the age of 53.
She formed the band after seeing Sex Pistols play on Hastings Pier on her 18th birthday and soon became
immediately recognised by followers of the movement thanks to her idiosyncratic vocals, fantastic headgear
and glinting dental braces. Her style was unconventional even by new wave standards,but was also incredibly
motivating and infectious.
X-Ray Spex songs tended to avoid the nihilism of the Pistols and the revolutionary spirit of The Clash in favour of critiques of consumerism and environmental destruction. Their best known number was the typically strident ‘Oh Bondage Up Yours!’, a rebellious rant of rejection which tackled social and gender norms and kicked off with Poly's voice mocking: "Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard."
Perhaps surprisingly, X-Ray Spex released just one album, Germ Free Adolescents, in 1978, but they didn’t waste the opportunity. The LP carried all their best numbers ‘Identity’, ‘Warrior in Woolworths’, ‘I’m A Cliché’ and the tremendous title track. They also showed a sax wasn’t out of place on a punk recording.
Not long after the band released the album, they split. Poly went solo and put out a more nuanced record, Translucence, in 1980 then retreated from the music industry to join the Hare Krishna movement.
Living in a Krishna temple in Hertfordshire with her daughter, she developed bipolar disorder but continued her creative career and recently launched a new musical work called ‘Generation Indigo’.
A late diagnosis of cancer of the spine and breast brought a final, insurmountable challenge and a statement on her official Twitter feed said: "We can confirm that the beautiful Poly Styrene, who has been a true fighter, won her battle on Monday evening to go to higher places."
Poly: "I know I'll probably be remembered for Oh Bondage Up Yours!" she told 6 Music last month. "I'd like to remembered for something a bit more spiritual."
Time will tell whether that becomes the case, but the fact she will be remembered is beyond doubt.
Poly, born Marianne Elliot-Said and the former singer with the X-Ray Spex, has died at the age of 53.
She formed the band after seeing Sex Pistols play on Hastings Pier on her 18th birthday and soon became
immediately recognised by followers of the movement thanks to her idiosyncratic vocals, fantastic headgear
and glinting dental braces. Her style was unconventional even by new wave standards,but was also incredibly
motivating and infectious.
X-Ray Spex songs tended to avoid the nihilism of the Pistols and the revolutionary spirit of The Clash in favour of critiques of consumerism and environmental destruction. Their best known number was the typically strident ‘Oh Bondage Up Yours!’, a rebellious rant of rejection which tackled social and gender norms and kicked off with Poly's voice mocking: "Some people think little girls should be seen and not heard."
Perhaps surprisingly, X-Ray Spex released just one album, Germ Free Adolescents, in 1978, but they didn’t waste the opportunity. The LP carried all their best numbers ‘Identity’, ‘Warrior in Woolworths’, ‘I’m A Cliché’ and the tremendous title track. They also showed a sax wasn’t out of place on a punk recording.
Not long after the band released the album, they split. Poly went solo and put out a more nuanced record, Translucence, in 1980 then retreated from the music industry to join the Hare Krishna movement.
Living in a Krishna temple in Hertfordshire with her daughter, she developed bipolar disorder but continued her creative career and recently launched a new musical work called ‘Generation Indigo’.
A late diagnosis of cancer of the spine and breast brought a final, insurmountable challenge and a statement on her official Twitter feed said: "We can confirm that the beautiful Poly Styrene, who has been a true fighter, won her battle on Monday evening to go to higher places."
Poly: "I know I'll probably be remembered for Oh Bondage Up Yours!" she told 6 Music last month. "I'd like to remembered for something a bit more spiritual."
Time will tell whether that becomes the case, but the fact she will be remembered is beyond doubt.
