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".
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".