Goth subculture
- This article is about the contemporary goth/gothic subculture. For the Germanic tribes of the same name, see the Goths.
Goth is a contemporary subculture prevalent in many countries around the globe. It began in the United Kingdom during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the post-punk genre. The goth subculture is remarkable for its longevity compared with others of the same era. Its imagery and cultural proclivities show influences from nineteenth century Gothic literature, mainly by way of horror movies.
The goth subculture has associated "gothic" tastes in music and fashion. Gothic music encompasses a number of different styles. Common to all is a tendency towards a “dark” sound. Styles of dress within the subculture range from death rock, punk, Victorian, androgynous, some Renaissance style clothes, combinations of the above, and/or lots of black attire, makeup and hair.
Origins and development of the subculture
Original subculture
By the late 1970s, there were a few post-punk bands in the United Kingdom labeled "gothic." However, it was not until the early 1980s that gothic rock became its own subgenre within post-punk and that followers of these bands started to come together as a distinctly recognizable group. The opening of the Batcave in London's Soho in July 1982 provided a prominent meeting point for the emerging scene, which had briefly been labeled positive punk by the New Musical Express.[1] The term "Batcaver" was later used to describe old-school goths.
Independent of the British scene, the late 1970s and early 1980s saw death rock branch off from American punk.[2] In Germany, members of the emerging goth subculture were called Grufties (engl. "vault creatures" or "tomb creatures") in the '80s and early '90s. They represented generally a fusion between the goth subculture and the New wave movement and were forming the early part of the "dark culture."
Goth after post-punk
After the demise of post-punk, goth continued to evolve, both musically and visually. This caused variations in style ("types" of goth). Local scenes also contributed to this variation. By the 1990s, Victorian fashion saw a renewed popularity in the goth scene, drawing on the mid-19th century gothic revival and the more morbid aspects of Victorian culture.
Current boundaries of the subculture
By the 1990s, the term "goth" and the boundaries of the goth subculture had become more contentious. New youth subcultures evolved, or became more popular, some of them being conflated with the goth subculture by the general public and the popular media. This was based primarily on appearance, and the fashions of the subcultures, rather than the musical genres of the bands associated with them. As time went on, the term was extended even further in popular usage, sometimes being applied to groups that had neither musical nor fashion similarities to the original gothic subculture.
This has led to the introduction of terms that some goths and others use to sort and label associated trends and members of loosely related subcultures. These include mallgoths or Neo-Goths in the US, Cuervos in Spain, Dark In Latin America, gogans in Australia, and spooky kids or moshers in the UK. More positive terms, such as mini-goths or baby bats, are also used by some older goths to refer to youths they see as exhibiting potential for growth into "true" goths later on.
The response of these younger groups to the older subculture varies. Some, being secure in a separate subcultural identity, express offense at being called "goths" in the first place, while others choose to join the existing subculture on its own terms. Still others have simply ignored its existence, and decided to appropriate the term "goth" themselves, and redefine the idea in their own image. Even within the original subculture, changing trends have added to the complexity of attempting to define precise boundaries.
The 'Goth look' comprises a significant portion of the Cosplay subculture, particulary in Japan where the Gothic Lolita look is very popular. This look combines Goth, with Cute, and often includes exagerrated, cartoonish elements from Victorian and Edwardian culture. The cosplay aspect of Goth subculture focuses almost exclusively on the clothes and makeup, and does not have a large crossover into the musical or social aspects that are common to the mainline Goth culture in the west. there are many types of goths that branch off: EMO, SKATER, PUNK, AND ROCKER
The music
The bands that began the gothic rock and death rock scene were limited in number, and included Bauhaus, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Southern Death Cult, Sex Gang Children, 45 Grave, The Damned, And Also The Trees, The Virgin Prunes, Joy Division, The Cure, The Cramps, Alien Sex Fiend and Christian Death.
By the mid-eighties, the number of bands began proliferating and became increasingly popular, including The Sisters of Mercy, The Mission UK, Xmal Deutschland and Fields of the Nephilim. The nineties saw the further growth of eighties bands and emergence of many new bands. Factory, 4AD, and Beggars Banquet released much of this music in Europe, while Geffen and Cleopatra Records amongst others released much of this music in the United States, where the subculture grew especially in New York, Los Angeles, & Orange County, California, with many nightclubs featuring gothic/industrial nights. The popularity of 4AD bands resulted in the creation of a similar US label called Projekt. This produces what is colloquially termed Ethereal, as well as the more electronic Darkwave.
By the mid-1990s, styles of music that were heard in venues that goths attended ranged from gothic rock, death rock, darkwave, industrial, EBM, ambient, experimental,synthpop, shoegaze, punk rock, 1970s glam rock (not to be confused with later glam rock), indie rock, to 1980s dance music. This variety was a result of a need to maximize attendance from everyone across the alternative music scene, particularly in smaller towns, and due to the eclectic tastes of the members of the subculture; but it also signaled new shifts in attitude. Gothic rock was originally clearly differentiated from industrial and heavy metal by older participants in the alternative scene, but newcomers and media misconceptions blurred the boundaries in the nineties as gothic rock became significantly less popular in the US and UK. Thus while industrial or heavy metal bands such as Marilyn Manson, Jack Off Jill, Type O Negative, Lacuna Coil, Dimmu Borgir, Cradle of Filth, Slipknot, and Mortiis were often labeled as "goth" by the media, this categorization was strongly resisted by longstanding goths. Even more confusion was added with the rise of gothic metal, with such bands consciously using gothic imagery from the dark ages in their own music and appearance and started even following fashion trends indistinguishable from older goth ones. Arguments about which music is and is not goth became an ever more significant part of how the subculture tried to define itself.
The other significant development of the nineties was the popularity of electronic dance bands such as VNV Nation and Covenant in the goth scene. The rise of what has been called cybergoth music and style, which has much in common with techno/synthpop, caused bitter divisions between its fans and those firmly attached to the analog and/or guitar based sound of gothic rock. Bands with a darkwave sound or those such as Soft Cell, or The Cruxshadows, which combine an electronic and gothic rock sound, appeal to both sides to some extent.
Recent years have seen a resurgence in the early positive punk and death rock sound, in reaction to the EBM, futurepop, and synthpop, which had taken over many goth clubs. Bands with an earlier goth sound like Cinema Strange, Bloody Dead And Sexy, Black Ice, and Antiworld are becoming very popular. Nights like Ghoul School and Release The Bats promote death rock heavily, and the Drop Dead Festival brings in death rock fans from all over the world.
Today, the goth music scene thrives most actively in Western Europe, especially Germany, with large festivals such as Wave-Gotik-Treffen, Zillo, and others drawing tens of thousands of fans from all over the world.
Cultural influences
The original Goths and gothic horror
The original Goths were a Germanic tribe who played an important role in the fall of the western Roman Empire. The name "goth" later became pejorative: synonymous with "barbarian" and being uncultured (a similar fate befell the name of another such tribe, the Vandals). During the Renaissance period in Europe, medieval architecture was retrospectively labeled gothic architecture, and was considered ugly and barbaric in contrast to the pure lines of classical architecture. In the United Kingdom, by the late 1700s, however, nostalgia for the medieval period destroyed by the Reformation led people to become fascinated with medieval gothic ruins. This sometimes went to the extent of building fake ruins. This fascination was often combined with an interest in medieval romances, Roman Catholic religion, and the supernatural. Enthusiasts for gothic revival architecture in the United Kingdom were led by Horace Walpole, and were sometimes nicknamed "goths", the first positive use of the term in the modern period.
The gothic novel of the late eighteenth century, a genre founded by Horace Walpole with the 1764 publication of The Castle of Otranto, was responsible for the more modern connotations of the term gothic. Henceforth, the term was associated with a mood of horror, morbidity, darkness and the supernatural. The gothic novel established much of the iconography of later horror literature and cinema, such as graveyards, ruined castles or churches, ghosts, vampires, nightmares, cursed families, being buried alive and melodramatic plots. Another notable element was the brooding figure of the gothic villain, which developed into the Byronic hero. The most famous gothic villain is the vampire, Dracula, originally depicted in a novel by Bram Stoker, then made more famous through the medium of horror movies.
The powerful imagery of horror movies began in German expressionist cinema in the twenties then passed onto the Universal Studios films of the thirties, then to camp horror B films such as Plan 9 From Outer Space and then to Hammer Horror films. By the 1960s, TV series, such as The Addams Family and The Munsters, used these stereotypes for camp comedy.
Certain elements in the dark, atmospheric music and dress of the post punk scene were clearly "gothic" in this sense. The use of "gothic" as an adjective in describing this music and its followers led to the term "goth".
Influence on the subculture
The influence of the gothic novel on the goth subculture can be seen in numerous examples of the subculture's poetry and music, though this influence sometimes came second hand, through the popular imagery of horror films and television. The Byronic hero, in particular, was a key precursor to the male goth image, while Dracula's iconic portrayal by Bela Lugosi appealed powerfully to early goths. They were attracted by Lugosi's aura of camp menace, elegance and mystique. Some people even credit the band Bauhaus' first single "Bela Lugosi's Dead", with the start of the goth subculture, though many prior art house movements also influenced gothic fashion and style. A notable early example was Siouxsie Sioux, of the musical group Siouxsie and the Banshees. Some members of Bauhaus were, themselves, fine art students and/or active artists.
The concept of the femme fatale, which appeared in Romantic literature, film noir, as well as in the gothic novel, went on to become a vital image for female goths. In cinema, the femme fatale style adopted by silent movie actress Theda Bara exerted a lasting influence. Bara was nicknamed the vamp, and her first name was an anagram for "death". She established the look for pale predatory women in later films, which ultimately influenced the goth subculture.
Some of the early gothic rock and death rock artists adopted traditional horror movie images, and also drew on horror movie soundtracks for inspiration. Their audiences responded in kind by further adopting appropriate dress and props. Use of standard horror film props like swirling smoke, rubber bats, and cobwebs were used as gothic club décor from the beginning in The Batcave. Such references in their music and image were originally tongue-in-cheek, but as time went on, bands and members of the subculture took the connection more seriously. As a result, morbid, supernatural, and occult themes became a more noticeably serious element in the subculture. The interconnection between horror and goth was highlighted in its early days by The Hunger, a 1983 vampire film, which starred David Bowie, Catherine Deneuve, and Susan Sarandon. The movie featured gothic rock group Bauhaus performing "Bela Lugosi's Dead" in a nightclub. In 1993, Whitby became the location for what became the UK's biggest goth festival as a direct result of being featured in Bram Stoker's Dracula.
Throughout the evolution of the goth subculture, familiarity with gothic literature became significant for many goths. Poe, Lovecraft, Shelley, Dante and the other classical writers became just as symbolic of the subculture as dressing all in black.
A newer literary influence on the gothic scene was Anne Rice's re-imagining of the idea of the vampire. Rice's characters were depicted as struggling with eternity and loneliness, this with their ambivalent or tragic sexuality had deep attractions for many goth readers, making her works very popular in the eighties through the nineties. Movies based on her books have been filmed in recent years - notably Interview with the Vampire, which starred Brad Pitt, and the more recent Queen of the Damned, in which goths appear directly and indirectly. The first film, in particular, helped further encourage the spread of Victorian style fashions in the subculture (although period inspired clothing has been a recurrent trend in the gothic subculture).
Later media influences
As the subculture became well-established the connection between goth and horror fiction became almost a cliche, with goths quite likely to appear as characters in horror novels and film. For example, The Crow drew directly on goth music and style. The movies of Tim Burton are all significant for their presentation of goth or goth-inspired characters, especially Beetlejuice, which features Lydia, a goth teen, Edward Scissorhands, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Corpse Bride. In turn, such movies drew new people into the gothic scene. Anne Rice's book series "The Vampire Chronicles" and the popular World of Darkness roleplaying games, especially Vampire: The Masquerade, also referred directly to gothic music and culture and encouraged an interest in the scene. Influences from anime as well as cyberpunk fiction such as The Matrix have found their way into the goth scene, which helped give rise to a new subculture and a new label, Cyber subculture, or the Industrial/goth offshoot, cybergoth; they also added to the popularity of Industrial music.
Of note is the recent positive potrayal of a recurring goth character on the American television series NCIS. Abby Sciuto played by Pauley Perrette is uniquely goth, but works firmly on the side of the protagonists as a highly skilled forsensic scientist.
Goth ideology
Defining an ideology of the gothic subculture is difficult for several reasons. First is the overwhelming importance of mood for those involved. This is, in part, inspired by romanticism and neoromanticism. The allure for goths of dark, mysterious, and morbid imagery and mood lies in the same tradition. The rise of Romanticism's gothic novel during the 19th century saw feelings of horror being commercially exploited as a form of mass entertainment, a process continued in the modern horror film. Balancing this emphasis on mood, the other central element of the subculture is a conscious sense of camp theatricality or self-dramatization.
The second impediment to defining a gothic ideology is goth's sometimes apolitical nature. While individual defiance of social norms was a very risky business in the nineteenth century, today it is far less socially radical. Thus, the significance of goth's subcultural rebellion is limited, and it draws on imagery at the heart of Western culture. Unlike the hippy or punk movements, the goth subculture has no pronounced political messages or cries for social activism. The subculture is marked by its emphasis on individualism, tolerance for (sexual) diversity, a strong emphasis on creativity, a dislike of social conservatism and a strong tendency towards cynicism, but even these ideas are not common to all goths. Goth ideology is based far more on aesthetics than ethics or politics.
For the individual goth, joining the subculture can be extremely valuable and personally fulfilling, especially in creative terms. However, it also can be risky, especially for the young, because of the negative attention it can attract. The value that young people find in the movement is evidenced by its continuing existence after other subcultures of the eighties such as the New Romantics have long since died out. Paul Hodkinson's book, Goth: Identity, Style and Subculture, explores how the Western cult of individualism, usually expressed via consumerism, is drawn on by goths and other subcultural groups. Many who are drawn to the culture have already failed to conform to the norms of existing society, and for its participants the gothic subculture provides an important way of experiencing a sense of community and validation not found in the outside world. Hodkinson shows how inside the gothic subculture status can be gained via enthusiastic participation and creativity, in creating a band, DJ-ing, making clothes, designing, creating art, or writing a fanzine. He suggests that the self-conscious artificiality of a subculture is a valid alternative choice in a post-modern world, compared to submitting to the invisible manipulations of popular consumerism and the mass media.
Religious elements
Spiritual, supernatural, and religious imagery has frequently played an important part in gothic fashion and also in song lyrics and art. However, many goths aspire to free themselves from the perceived limitations of traditional belief systems, and express a belief in open-mindedness and diversity.
One widespread misconception is that the goth subculture as a whole represents a unified cult-like religion, when in reality there is a wide diversity of religious beliefs throughout the subculture. A large number of goths adhere to atheism or agnosticism or spiritualism, not wanting to commit to organized religion or what they perceive to be repressive and/or irrational belief systems. An interest in neo-paganism, shamanism and the occult amongst goths appears to be higher than amongst the general population. Many goths also follow traditional religions such as Christianity, Judaism, Hinduism, Taoism, Buddhism, and so on, as illustrated by websites like GothicChristianity.com.
Elder goths
An elder goth is a senior member of the goth subculture, usually between the ages of 29 and 40. Elder goths are generally longtime veterans of the scene, perhaps going back to the Batcave era, but there are some late bloomers.
Elder goths are more likely to draw upon the artistic aspects of the scene, in contrast to their younger counterparts who are sometimes motivated to act for shock value. Older goths may regard those who act in this ways as poseurs. An elder goth may refuse to acknowledge them as fellow goths. In contrast to the stereotypical image of a goth as a maladjusted outcast loner, some elders are married with families, and most have close knit ties with other members of the subculture.
Corporate goths
Though some goths gravitate toward workplaces that allow a great deal of personal expression, or simply do not care what employees look like, others work in the corporate sector where certain dresscodes are enforced. They usually add a gothic twist to their ensembles; some would say they wear corporate gothwear, which satisfies gothic tastes in fashion without alienating more mainstream and conservative co-workers, as well as keeping with management policies. Corporate gothwear varies based on individual taste, though a David Bowie influence is often prevalent, as well as 1920s through 1960s styles. Examples include, but are not limited to, a black pinstripe suit and burgundy shirt for men and a black turtleneck and skirt or suit with silver jewelry for women.
A recent study by Sussex University suggests that goths are likely to grow up to be doctors, lawyers or architects, and that goths are usually intelligent, refined and sensitive, and keen on poetry and books [1].
Popular intolerance and media characterizations
Like many other music based subcultures, goths have faced differing levels of social intolerance due mostly to outward stylistic appearances. Social intolerance ranges from looks of indignation and verbal taunts to physical violence. A preoccupation with themes of death, romance, the supernatural, darkness, the archaic, and the generally macabre have occasionally raised public concerns regarding the emotional well-being of, mainly, young goths and general fears of cultic indoctrination. Such conceptions are often reinforced by popular media, as exemplified in the Columbine High School Massacre, which was carried out by two troubled students inaccurately linked to the gothic subculture. The Columbine massacre caused a widespread public backlash against the goth scene in America; however, investigators of the incident later denied that any such link between the students and the goth scene, in fact, existed [2].
References
- Books
- Baddeley, Gavin: Goth Chic: A Connoisseur's Guide to Dark Culture (Plexus, US, August 2002, ISBN 0859653080)
- Davenport-Hines, Richard: Gothic: Four Hundred Years of Excess, Horror, Evil and Ruin (1999: North Port Press. ISBN 0865475903 (trade paperback) - A voluminous, if somewhat patchy, chronological/aesthetic history of the Gothic covering the spectrum from Gothic architecture to The Cure.
- Hodkinson, Paul: Goth: Identity, Style and Subculture (Dress, Body, Culture Series) 2002: Berg. ISBN 1859736009 (hardcover); ISBN 185973605X (softcover)
- Kilpatrick, Nancy: The goth Bible : A Compendium for the Darkly Inclined. 2004: St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 0312306962
- Voltaire: What is Goth? (WeiserBooks, US, 2004; ISBN 1578633222) - a humorous and easy-to-read view of the goth subculture
- Andrew C. Zinn: The Truth Behind The Eyes (IUniverse, US, 2005; ISBN 0-595-37103-5) - Dark Poetry
- Notes
- ^ Batcave club history Scathe.demon.co.uk. URL Accessed April 23, 2006.
- ^ Archived Interview with Ms. Dinah Cancer Alicebag.com. URL Accessed April 23, 2006.
See also
- Darkwave
- Ethereal Wave
- Gothic rock
- Post punk
- Death rock
- Mick Mercer
- Cybergoth
- Visual Kei
- Gothic fashion
- Gothic Lolita
- Goth Code
- History of subcultures in the 20th century
- List of Gothic rock bands
- List of non-goth musical artists popular within goth subculture
- Cyberpunk
External links
General Websites
- AlterNation Music
- DarkLinks.com
- [3] Club Bizarre: New Zealand resource site.
- DarkNation International Goth Community
- Goth.net
- Gothic Startheaven More gothic links
- ScatheWeb History of Goth
- What is a Goth?
Events
- The International Gothic Club Listing — Worldwide Goth club directory that is sorted by region. Content is contributed by visitors and usually consists of club specifics such as location, music type, cover charge, drinks, dress code, directions and other miscellaneous club information
- Drop Dead Festival Largest US Deathrock & Goth Festival
- GothicChicago.comChicago's Online Gothic/Industrial/Spooky Resource since Halloween 1997
- Netgoth UK based goth event listings
- NYC Gothic Events Concerts, festivals and weekly events in New York City
- Wave Gotik Treffen Annual Goth festival in Leipzig, Germany (English version)
- Bat's Day (at Disneyland, USA)
- Whitby Gothic Weekend (UK)
- Dark Arts Festival (USA)
- The Dark Skies Festival(U.S.A.)
- Convergence(varies)
- Black Sun Festival(New Haven, CT, U.S.A.)
Magazines and Press
- Drop Dead Magazine US Goth and Deathrock Magazine
- Morbid Outlook
- "Undead Undead Undead" (Alternative Press November 1994 article by Dave Thompson and Jo-Ann Greene, with retrospective quotes from early 1980s post punk bands on the "goth" label.
- Religious tolerance.org: The Goth Culture: Its history, stereotypes, religious connections, etc.
- Eulogy for The Bank A History of the Infamous NYC Goth Club.
- Gothic Beauty Magazine Gothic lifestyle, beauty, and fashion magazine.
- NewScientist An article on benefits of the Goth subculture.
- Midnight Calling: Goth/Deathrock/Punk/Psychobilly music, culture, and fashion E-zine.