| Gothic rock | |
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| Other names |
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| Stylistic origins | |
| Cultural origins | Late 1970s, England |
| Derivative forms | |
| Subgenres | |
| Death rock | |
| Fusion genres | |
| Local scenes | |
| Leeds, England[1] | |
| Other topics | |
Gothic rock (also known asgoth rock or simplygoth) is asubgenre ofrock music which grew out of Britishpost-punk in the late 1970s. The genre draws fromgothic literature,nihilism,dark romanticism,poetry andtragedy. The style evolved through early post-punk bands such asSiouxsie and the Banshees,Joy Division,Bauhaus, andthe Cure, who shifted their music toward darker gothic overtones through an emphasis on minor chords, reverb, dark arrangements, and melancholic melodies.
In 1981,Sounds writer Steve Keaton published an article on "punk gothique", a term coined byUK Decay frontmanSteve Abbott to describe their music. By 1983, theNME briefly used "positive punk" to describe a music scene associated with a London club known as theBatcave, which included artists such asAlien Sex Fiend,Specimen, UK Decay,Sex Gang Children,Rubella Ballet andSouthern Death Cult. The British press later opted for the term "goth" to define thesubculture and style of music, which was further developed by the arrival ofthe Sisters of Mercy. Followed by,Flesh for Lulu,Play Dead,Rubella Ballet,Gene Loves Jezebel, Blood and Roses, andAusgang.
In the United States,45 Grave andChristian Death further developed the scene, which led to the emergence ofdeathrock. By the late 1980s and 1990s, gothic rock gave rise to severalfusion genres such asgothabilly,gothic country andgothic metal.
According to music journalistSimon Reynolds, standard musical fixtures of gothic rock include "scything guitar patterns, high-pitched basslines that often usurped the melodic role [and] beats that were either hypnoticallydirgelike or tom-tom heavy and 'tribal'".[2] Reynolds described the vocal style as consisting of "deep, droning alloys ofJim Morrison andLeonard Cohen".[2] Several acts useddrum machines downplaying therhythm's backbeat.[3]
Gothic rock typically deals with dark themes addressed through lyrics and the music's atmosphere. The poetic sensibilities of the genre led gothic rock lyrics to exhibit literaryromanticism, morbidity,existentialism, religious symbolism, or supernatural mysticism.[4] Gothic rock is an offshoot ofpost-punk. According toAllMusic, the genre "took the cold synthesizers and processed guitars of post-punk and used them to construct foreboding, sorrowful, often epic soundscapes."[5] Early gothic rock had introspective or personal lyrics, but according to AllMusic, "its poetic sensibilities soon led to a taste for literary romanticism, morbidity, religious symbolism, and/or supernatural mysticism."[5]
Gothic rock creates a dark atmosphere by drawing influence from thedrones used bythe Velvet Underground, and many gothic singers are influenced by the "deep and dramatic" vocal timbre ofDavid Bowie, albeit singing at even lower pitches.[3]
In terms of fashion, gothic bands incorporated influences from 19th-century Gothic literature along with horror films and, to a lesser extent, theBDSM culture.[6]Gothic fashions within the subculture range from deathrock,punk,androgynous,Victorian, toRenaissance andmedieval-style attire, or combinations of the above, most often with black clothing, makeup and hair.[7]Backcombed hair was popular among gothic fans in the 1980s.[8][9]
The term "gothic rock" was originally coined by critic John Stickney who used the label to describe the music ofthe Doors in October 1967, in a review published inThe Williams Record.[10] Stickney wrote that the band met the journalists "in the gloomy vaulted wine cellar of theDelmonico hotel, the perfect room to honor the gothic rock of the Doors".[10] The author noted that contrary to the "pleasant, amusinghippies", there was "violence" in their music and a dark atmosphere on stage during their concerts.[10] Stickney ultimately titled his article, "Four Doors to the Future: Gothic Rock Is Their Thing".[10]
In April 1977, criticDave Marsh ofThe Morning Record describedPhilip Glass's albumNorth Star as "the best neo-Gothic rock sinceJohn Cale andTerry Riley'sChurch of Anthrax, or more appropriately, the first couple of Doors albums".[11]
On November 4, 1978Record Mirror's Tim Lott describedPere Ubu's 1975 debut single "30 Seconds Over Tokyo" as "discordant gothic rock".[12] In a review of a Siouxsie and the Banshees' concert in July 1978, criticNick Kent stated, "parallels and comparisons can now be drawn with gothic rock architects like the Doors and, certainly, early Velvet Underground".[13] In 1980, Joy Division's albumCloser was noted for its "dark strokes of gothic rock" bySounds.[14]
During the late 1960s and early 1970s, several musicians became influential in shaping the aesthetics and musical conventions of gothic rock such asMarc Bolan,[15]Lou Reed andthe Velvet Underground,[16]Jim Morrison and the Doors, David Bowie,Brian Eno, andIggy Pop and the Stooges.[17][18]
JournalistKurt Loder would write retrospectively that the song "All Tomorrow's Parties" bythe Velvet Underground andNico is a "mesmerizing gothic-rock masterpiece" whileRolling Stone claimed their song "Venus in Furs" made the band "goth pioneers".[19][20] Nico's 1968 albumThe Marble Index has been described byAlternative Press as "the first truly gothic album".[21] With its stark sound, somber lyrics, and dark visual aesthetic.[22][23] However, music journalist Simon Reynolds considersshock rock artistAlice Cooper as "the true ungodly godfather of goth" due to his "theatrics andblack humor", that was inspired by the sound and visual aesthetic ofArthur Brown.[24][25][26][15]Screamin' Jay Hawkins' early style of shock rock, which blended occult imagery and theatricality withrock and roll, as exemplified in his 1956 track "I Put a Spell on You", has also been retroactively recognized as a forerunner to gothic music.[18]
In the late 1970s, the word "gothic" was used to describe the atmosphere ofpost-punk bands likeSiouxsie and the Banshees,Magazine andJoy Division.[27] In March 1979, Kent used the gothic adjective in his review of Magazine's second album,Secondhand Daylight. Kent noted that there was "a new austere sense of authority" to their music, with a "dank neo-Gothic sound".[28] The second Siouxsie and the Banshees album, also released in 1979, was a precursor in several aspects.The Guardian'sAlexis Petridis retrospectively stated, "A lot of musical signifiers of classic gothic rock - scything, effects-laden guitar, pounding tribal drums – are audible, on [...]Join Hands".[29] In September, Joy Division's managerTony Wilson described their music as "gothic" on the television showSomething Else,[30] and their producerMartin Hannett described their style as "dancing music with gothic overtones".[31][29]
In 1980,Melody Maker wrote that "Joy Division are masters of this gothic gloom".[32] In 1983,The Face'sPaul Rambali recalled that there were "several strong Gothic characteristics" in the music of Joy Division.[33] In 1984, Joy Division's bassistPeter Hook namedPlay Dead as one of their heirs: "If you listen to a band like Play Dead, who I really like, Joy Division played the same stuff that Play Dead are playing. They're similar."[34]
Englishpunk rock bandthe Damned have been cited as an influence on and forerunner to gothic rock, in both music and aesthetics;[35][36] their later musical style began shifting to goth, particularly on their 1985 albumPhantasmagoria.[37]
Retrospectively,Pitchfork describedglam rock as having a pivotal influence of the development of the gothic rock genre, stating, "Although it abandoned the psychedelic color palette and exchanged alien worship for a vampire cult, goth kept glam's theatricality intact, as well as its openness to experimentation", adding that early glam andart rock musicianBrian Eno "may have contributed more to goth’s sonic DNA" than David Bowie, regarding the 1974 track "Third Uncle" as a "proto-goth" song.[18]
Not long after, the "gothic" label "became a critical term of abuse" for a band likeBauhaus, who had arrived on the music scene in 1979.[31] At the time,NME considered that "Siouxsie and the Banshees,Adam and the Ants and even... Joy Division" had opened up "a potentially massive market" for newcomers like Bauhaus andKilling Joke: journalist Andy Gill then separated these two groups of bands, pointing out that there was a difference "between art and artifice".[38]
However, Bauhaus's debut single, "Bela Lugosi's Dead", released in late 1979, was retrospectively considered to be the beginning of the gothic rock genre.[39] According toPeter Murphy, the song was written to be tongue-in-cheek, but since the group performed it with "naive seriousness", that is how the audience understood it.[40] Bauhaus released their debut albumIn the Flat Field in 1980, and the album is often considered the first gothic rock album.[41][42]
In the early 1980s, post-punk bands such as Siouxsie and the Banshees and the Cure included more gothic characteristics in their music.[44] According to Reynolds, with their fourth album, 1981'sJuju, the Banshees included several gothic qualities, lyrically and sonically,[45] whereas according toThe Guardian,Juju wasart rock on certain album tracks andpop on the singles.[46] Their bassist,Steven Severin, attributed the aesthetic used by the Banshees around that time to the influence ofthe Cramps.[44]The Cure's "oppressively dispirited" trio of albums,Seventeen Seconds (1980),Faith (1981) andPornography (1982), cemented that group's stature in the genre.[47] The line "It doesn't matter if we all die" began thePornography album, which is considered as "the Cure's gothic piece de resistance".[48] They would later become the most commercially successful of these groups.[49] The Cure's style was "withdrawn",[47] contrasting with their contemporaries likeNick Cave's the Birthday Party, who drew onblues and violent turmoil.[50] With the Birthday Party'sJunkyard album, Nick Cave combined "sacred and profane" things, usingOld Testament imagery with stories about sin, curses and damnation.[51] Their 1981 single "Release the Bats" was particularly influential in the scene.[51]
Killing Joke were originally inspired byPublic Image Ltd., borrowing from funk,disco,dub and, later,heavy metal.[52] Calling their style "tension music", Killing Joke distorted these elements to provocative effect, as well as producing a morbid, politically charged visual style.[52] Reynolds identified the Birthday Party and Killing Joke as essential proto-goth groups.[53] Despite their legacy as progenitors of gothic rock, those groups disliked the label.[54]Adam Ant's early work was also a major impetus for the gothic rock scene, and much of the fanbase came from his milieu.[55] Other early contributors to the scene included UK Decay and Ireland'sVirgin Prunes.
In February 1981,Sounds writer Steve Keaton published an article on "punk gothique", entitled "The Face of Punk Gothique",[56] a term coined byUK Decay frontmanSteve Abbott to describe their music.[56] In the article, Keaton stated, "Could this be the coming of Punk Gothique? WithBauhaus flying in on similar wings could it be the next big thing?"[56][57] WriterCathi Unsworth believes that Abbott was the first to ascribe the term "goth" to the music and subculture with which it would come to be associated, citing an interview in May 1981 where he once again used the term "punk gothique".[58][59][60][61]
Gothic rock would not be adopted as "positive identity, a tribal rallying cry" until a shift in the scene in winter 1982-83.[31] In London, theBatcave club had opened on 21 July 1982:[63][64] it became a venue for the emerging scene and subculture. Bands likeSpecimen performed many concerts there.[65][66][67] That same year,Ian Astbury of the bandSouthern Death Cult used the term "gothic goblins" to describeSex Gang Children's fans.[68] Southern Death Cult became icons of the scene, drawing aesthetic inspiration fromNative American culture and appearing on the cover ofNME in October.[69]
On 19 February 1983, the emerging scene was described as "positive punk" on the front cover ofNME, in an article titled "Punk Warriors" by music journalistRichard North.[17] The article described groups such as Bauhaus,Theatre of Hate and UK Decay as part of the movement.[17] Other associated acts wereAlien Sex Fiend,[62] the Mob,[70]Rubella Ballet,[71] Sex Gang Children andSouthern Death Cult. On June 14, 1983, BBC radio DJJohn Peel noted that theNME had dropped the term "positive punk" and had now opted for "goth" to describe the emerging subculture.[72] That year, myriad goth groups emerged, includingFlesh for Lulu,Play Dead,Rubella Ballet,Gene Loves Jezebel, Blood and Roses, andAusgang.[73]
Reynolds cited the shift between gothic music to traditional gothic rock or goth rock being primarily influenced by theLeeds band,the Sisters of Mercy.[74] As journalist Jennifer Park put it, "The original blueprint for gothic rock had mutated significantly. Doom and gloom was no longer confined to its characteristic atmospherics, but as the Sisters demonstrated, it could really rock".[75] The Sisters of Mercy, who cited influences such as Leonard Cohen,Gary Glitter,Motörhead,the Stooges, the Velvet Underground, the Birthday Party,Suicide, andthe Fall, created a new, harder form of gothic rock.[76] In addition, they incorporated adrum machine.[76] Reynolds identified their 1983 single "Temple of Love" as the quintessential goth anthem of the year, along with Southern Death Cult's "Fatman".[77] The group created their own record label,Merciful Release, which also signedthe March Violets, who performed in a similar style.[78] According to Reynolds, the March Violets "imitated Joy Division sonically".[79] Another band,the Danse Society was particularly inspired by the Cure'sPornography period.[78] The 4AD label released music in a moreethereal style,[80] by groups such asCocteau Twins,[81]Dead Can Dance, andXmal Deutschland.[73]
Later stages of Gothic Rock in the UK came with a shift in sound and commercial success. Southern Death Cult reformed asthe Cult, a more conventionalhard rock group.[77] Bauhaus members reformed as the psychedelia-influencedLove and Rockets achieving both critical and commercial success during the late 1980s and '90s.[82] In their wake,the Mission, which included two former members of the Sisters of Mercy (Wayne Hussey and Craig Adams), achieved commercial success in the mid-1980s to early 1990s,[83] as didFields of the Nephilim andAll About Eve.[84] European groups inspired by gothic rock also proliferated, includingClan of Xymox.[85] Other bands associated with the genre includedAll Living Fear,And Also the Trees,Balaam and the Angel,Claytown Troupe,Dream Disciples, Feeding Fingers,Inkubus Sukkubus, Libitina,Miranda Sex Garden,Nosferatu,Rosetta Stone, andSuspiria.[86]
Record labels likeFactory,4AD andBeggars Banquet released much of this music in Europe, and through a vibrant import music market in the US, the subculture grew, especially inNew York andLos Angeles, California, where many nightclubs featured "gothic/industrial" nights and bands likeBlack Tape for a Blue Girl,Theatre of Ice,Human Drama andThe Wake became key figures for the genre to expand on a nationwide level.[87]
American gothic rock began with Californian bands such as45 Grave andChristian Death, whose harder, morepunk rock-influenced style of gothic rock became known asdeathrock.[88] Christian Death combined "self-consciously controversial tactics" withLos Angeles punk andheavy metal influences. Their singerRozz Williams committedsuicide by hanging in 1998 at age 34.[89] 45 Grave was more inspired by heavy metal than Christian Death and featured female singerDinah Cancer. Some punk acts likethe Cramps,the Gun Club,Lydia Lunch,the Nuns,the Misfits andT.S.O.L. have been credited to be influential on both the sound and the aesthetics of theGoth subculture in America, being subsequently credited to be pioneers in contemporaneous goth-related styles such as "deathrock", "horror punk", "gothabilly" and "goth punk".[90] Notable 1980s American goth bands includeSuper Heroines,Human Drama,the Wake andKommunity FK.[91]
The 1990s saw a resurgence of the goth subculture, fueled largely by crossover from theindustrial music, electronic and metal scenes; and goth culture and aesthetic again worked itself into the mainstream consciousness, inspiring thriving goth music scenes in most cities and notoriety throughout popular culture as well as new goth-centric U.S. record labels such asCleopatra Records, among others.The Guardian's Dave Simpson stated, "[I]n the 90s, goths all but disappeared asdance music became the dominant youth cult".[92] As a result, the goth movement went underground and fractured intocyber goth,shock rock,industrial metal,gothic metal, and Medieval folk metal.[92]
At the time, gothic metal fused "the bleak, icy atmospherics of goth rock with the loud guitars and aggression of heavy metal."[93]Marilyn Manson was seen as a "goth-shock icon" bySpin,[94] and combined "atmosphere from goth and disco"[95] with "industrial sound".[96] In the 2000s, critics regularly noticed the influence of goth on bands of that time period.[97][98] English bandThe Horrors mixed 1960sgarage rock with 1980s goth.[97] When referencing female singerZola Jesus, writers questioned if she announced the second coming of the genre[99] as her music was described with this term.[100]
In the 1990s, several acts such asPJ Harvey,[101]Manic Street Preachers,[102]Nine Inch Nails[103] andthe Smashing Pumpkins[104] included gothic characteristics in their music. According toRolling Stone, PJ Harvey's music in 1993 "careens fromblues to goth togrunge, often in the space of a single song". In 1997,Spin qualifiedPortishead'ssecond album as "gothic", "deadly" and "trippy". Critic Barry Walters observed that the group got "darker, deeper and more disturbing" in comparison to their debut albumDummy.[105] In the late 2010s,the Twilight Sad included gothic elements in their music.[106]
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)Young men in dark silhouettes, some darker than others, looking inwards, looking out, discovering the same horror and describing it with the same dark strokes of gothic rock.
{{cite book}}:|work= ignored (help)Curtis' death wrapped an already mysterious group in legend. From the press eulogies, you would think Curtis had gone to join Chatterton, Rimbaud and Morrison in the hallowed hall of premature harvests. To a group with several strong gothic characteristics was added a further piece of romance. The rock press had lost its great white hope, but they had lost a friend. It must have made bitter reading.
Because it is unsettling, it is like sinister and gothic, it won't be played. [interview of Joy Division's manager Tony Wilson next to Joy Division's drummer Stephen Morris from 3:31]
Curtis' death wrapped an already mysterious group in legend. From the press eulogies, you would think Curtis had gone to join Chatterton, Rimbaud and Morrison in the hallowed hall of premature harvests. To a group with several strong Gothic characteristics was added a further piece of romance.
sixties garage meets eighties goth.
In mood as much as message,The Holy Bible was an intensely sombre record, overcast by the same stormy skies which darkened Van Gogh's last works. It was gothic and, quite often, literallygoth: more than one song could easily have been early Cure, Sisters of Mercy or Bauhaus.
Nine Inch Nails auteur dropped the Downward Spiral, crunching punk and goth and Depeche Mode
"The Crying Tree of Mercury" continues the industrial Goth-rock of Adore
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