ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti sˈɛvən, sˈuːsi ænd ðə bˈænʃiːz dᵻskɹˈaɪbd ðɛɹ mjˈuːzɪk æz "kˈoʊld, məʃˈiːnlˈaɪk ænd pˈæʃənət æt ðə sˈeɪm tˈaɪm", ænd sˈaʊndz mˌæɡɐzˈiːn pɹˈɑːfɪsˌaɪzd ɐbˌaʊt ðə bˈænd: "ðeɪ sˈaʊnd lˈaɪk ɐ twˈɛnti fˈɜːst sˈɛntʃɚɹi ɪndˈʌstɹɪəl plˈænt...lˈɪsən tə ðə kˈoʊld wˈeɪv ɹˈoːɹ fɹʌmðə sˈɛvənti z ˌɪntʊ ðə ˈeɪɾi z".
In 1977, Siouxsie and the Banshees described their music as "cold, machine-like and passionate at the same time", and Sounds magazine prophecised about the band: "[they] sound like a 21st century industrial plant [...] Listen to the cold wave roar from the '70s into the '80s".