Jul 27

 

This list is in progress, if you want to add something, do it as a comment. Some of the bands changed styles or still changing, but methinks the list is useful.

#

3SKS

a

A Murder of Angels
Abigor
Aborym
Abney Park
Aesma Daeva
Agathodaimon
Alien Sex Fiend
All About Eve
Almond, Marc
Amber Asylum
Amos, Tori Official Site
Amos, Tori The Dent
Amos, Tori Here in My Head
Anathema Device
Ancient Gallery, The
And Also The Trees
Angels of Venice
Anderson, Laurie
Andi Sexgang (Sex Gang Children)
Anteros Bullet
Antiworld
Aphelion
Apoptygma Berzerk
Arcanta
À Rebours
Arkham Asylum
Asrai
Astro Vamps
Ataraxia
Attrition
Audra
Autumn
Autumn Tears
Avrigus
Azoic, The

b

Backworld
Battery Domain, The Home of Battery, Ivoux and Dia
Bethany Curve
Bauhaus
Beborn Beton
Bel Canto
Bella Morte
Belphegor
Beltane
Bernadette McCallion
Bitter Fall
Bitter Grace
black tape for a blue girl
BR3N
Breath of Life, The
Brendan Perry
Brickbats, The
Brides, The Brickbats sideproject
Butterfly Messiah

c

Carfax Abbey
Carmilla’s Dress
Carol Masters
Cave, Nick
Cell Division
Cesium 137
Changelings, The
Children on Stun (Stun)
Christian Death
Cinema Strange
Claire Voyant
Clan of Xymox
Cleen
Cocteau Twins
Coil
Collection D’Arnell - Andrea Unofficial site (English)
Collide
Complicity
Conspiracy
Coph Nia
Corpus Delicti
Corrosion
Corvus Corax
Covenant
Cradle of Filth
Cranes
Creatures, The (Formerly Siouxsie & the Banshees)
Crucifix Nocturnal Christians
Crüxshadows, The
Cure, The
Current 93
cut.rate.box
Curve
Curve, Bethany
C4rved Ins4ne

d

Daemonia Nymphe & Fiendish Nymph
Daeonia
Damned, The
Dance on Glass
Darkseed
Darling
Darling Violetta
Das Ich Official site (English, German)
Das Ich Official site (French)
Dead Can Dance
Dead Can Dance DCD Within
Dead Poets Society
Deadsy
Death in June
Death in Vegas
Deathwatch Beetle Repairman
Deep Eynde, The
Deep Red
Deine Lakaien
DeLien
Delerium
Demone, Gitane
Depeche Mode
Dream Disciples, The
Dream Into Dust
Dia
Diamanda Galas
Diary of Dreams Accession Records site
Die Kranken Katzchen
Die Form
Die Laughing
Die My Darling
Digital Darknet
Disjecta Membra
Dissonance
Diva Destruction
Dream Disciples
Drecker, Anneli Bel Canto vocalist


e

Echo and the Bunnymen
Eden Official site of Sean Bowley and Eden
Einstürtzende Neubaten
Elijah’s Mantle
Empire Hideous, The
Eternal Chapter, The
Eternia
Eva O


f

Faces of Sarah, The
Fading Colours
Faith Assembly
Faith & Disease
Faith & the Muse
Fearcult
Fear of Dolls
FEARvLOATHINC
Feindflug
Fields of the Nephilim
Fiendish Nymph & Daemonia Nymphe
Fixer
Foxx, John
Frontline Assembly
Frontline Assembly
Front242
Funhouse
Funker Vogt

g

Gaijin
Gail of God
Gallows Humor
Garbage
Garden of Delight
Garden of Dreams
Gary Numan
Gathering, The
Gene Loves Jezebel
Gerrard, Lisa
Ghost Orgy
Ghosting
Glampire
Gossamer
Goteki formerly Sneaky Bat Machine

h

Handful of Dust
Haujobb Accession Records site
Helium Vola
Helltrain
HIM
Hocico
Hollenthon
Holy Cow
Horatii, The
Human Drama
Hungry Lucy


i

I Viscera
IKON
Immaculata
In Extremo
Inertia
Infest8 & Zos Kia Cultus
Inkubus Sukkubus
In My Rosary
International Mind Control Corporation, The Home of Snog, Soma, Black Lung
Intra-Venus
In The Nursery
Iris


j

Jekyll Switch
Jill Tracy
John Foxx
JUDITH
Julianne Regan All About Eve vocalist
Jupiter Project, The
Juno Reactor
Juno Reactor Blue Room Released site


k

Kidney Thieves
Killing Joke
Killing Miranda
Kirlian Camera
KMFDM


l

L’Ame Immortelle
Lacrimosa
Lady Besery’s Garden
Lanterna
Larvae
Last Dance, The
Laurie Anderson
Legendary Pink Dots
Libitina
Licorice
Lilac Ambush
Living Jarboe, The
Lisa Gerrard
London After Midnight
Loretta’s Doll
Lorin Richards
Love is Colder Than Death
Love is Colder Than Death Label site
Love Like Blood
Love Spirals Downwards
Lowsunday
Lucid Dementia
Lycia


m

Machine in the Garden, The
Malaise
Malochia
Mara’s Torment
Marc Almond
Marilyn Manson
Mazzy Star
McCallion, Bernadette
Mediæval Bæbes, The
Media Violence
Meg Lee Chin
Mephisto Walz
Mira
Mirabilis
The Mirror Reveals
Misercordia
Misfits, The
Mission UK, The
Moonspell
Moors, The
Mors Syphilitica
Mortiis
Murphy, Peter
My Dying Bride
My Scarlet Life
Myssouri


n

Neurepublik
New Model Army
New York Room, The
Nick Cave
Nightwish
Nine Inch Nails
Nocturne
Nordenstam, Stina
Nosferatu
Nothing Inside
Noxious
Numan, Gary
Numeralia
Nyarlathotep


o

Of Unknown Origin
ONE
Oneiroid Psychosis
Ophelia’s Sweet Demise
Ordo Equilibrio
Ordo Equitum Solis
Ostia
Otto’s Daughter
Ours
Oxygen Law
Ozymandias


p

Paradise Lost
Paradoxx
Per Somnia
Peter Murphy
Peter Ulrich
pFrenz-C
p j harvey
Portishead
Project Pitchfork
Project Sphere
Project 12:01
Psyche
Psychic TV


q

Qntal


r

Radiohead
Rakit
Rammstein
Rasputina
Razor Skyline, The
Recoil
Reliquary
Resurrection Eve
Rhea’s Obsession
Roach, Steve
Rosetta Stone
Rozz Williams
Rule, Wendy


s

Sabrina
Sanguis et Cinis German Site
Sanguis et Cinis English Site
Sapphic Ode
Secret Cervix, The
Secret Secret
Seraphim Shock
Seventh Harmonic
Shemsu Hor
Shroud, The
Sigue Sigue Sputnik
Silex
Sins of Thy Beloved, The
Siouxsie and the Banshees
Sisters of Mercy, The
Skinny Puppy
Sneaky Bat Machine now known as Goteki
Sopor Aeternus
Soulwhirlingsomewhere
Spahn Ranch
Spectres, The
SPF1000
Spiderlegs
Spiral Dance
SpySociety99
St. Eve
Stare
Star Industry
Steve Roach
STOA
Strawberry Switchblade
Stun (Children on Stun)
Sunday Munich
Sunshine Blind
SWANS
Swarf
Switchblade Symphony
Synthetic Dream Foundation, The


t

Tankt
Tapping The Vein
Tea Party, The
Tear Garden
The 69 Eyes
The Beautiful Deadly Children
The Flying Buttresses
The Lords of the New Church
The Misfits
The Missing
The Sins
Theatre of Tragedy
Therion
This Ascension
This Burning Effigy
Thread
To/Die/For
Torsion
Toxic Shock Syndrome
Tracy, Jill
Trance to the Sun
Trespass
Tristania
Two Witches
Type O Negative


 

 

u

Underwater
Ulrich, Peter
Ulver
Umbra et Imago
Unquiet Void, The
Unto Ashes
Uranium 235


v

VAST Visual Audio Sensory Theatre
Vehemence Realized
Velvet Acid Christ
vidnaObmana
VLE
VNV Nation
Voltaire


w

Waterglass
Wench
Wendy Rule
Whimsical
Williams, Rozz
Winterland
Wish
Wolfsheim Official site (German)
Wolfsheim Unofficial site (English)
Wretched Villains, The
Written in Ashes
Wumpscut


x

XO 100


y

Yendri
You Shriek
Your Shapeless Beauty


z

Zeitgeist
Zia
Zoar
Zos Kia Cultus & Infest8

Jul 27

contact.jpg

1. Mask by Bauhaus
2. Floodland by Sisters of Mercy
3. Hyaena by Siouxsie and the Banshees
4. Five on the Open Ended Richter by Einsturzende Neubauten
5. First and Last and Always by Sisters of Mercy
6. Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
7. Sky’s Gone Out by Bauhaus
8. Pornography by The Cure
9. Embryodead by Wumpscut
10. Into the Labyrinth by Dead Can Dance
11. Angst by KMFDM
12. Serpentine Gallery by SwitchBlade Symphony
13. Empires by VNV Nation
14. Only Theatre of Pain by Christian Death
15. Sum & Substance by Mission UK

===================================

Add your favorites as a comment, and see how big this list becomes.

Jul 27

What is Goth?

This is probably the hardest question any goth could try and answer, one may as well ask ‘what is society?’ as it has so many facets it defies any definitive explanation.

Goth in its simplest form, is a subculture. A group of people who feel comfortable within each others company. There is no specific thing that defines what you need to do or be to fit into the goth scene (except of course the implied black clothing). People in the goth scene all have different musical tastes, follow different religions, have different occupations, hobbies, and fashion sense.

Why do people become goths?

Most goths become goths because they have been spurned by ‘normal’ society because the way they want to live their lives does not fit in with how most people are told to live theirs. Goths are free thinkers, people who do not accept the moral rules of society because they’re told ‘This is just how it is’ or ‘This is what God says!’. Rather goths tend to listen to what you have to say, and make up their own mind. This kind of free thinking and rejection of dogma earns only rejection in todays society.

However because of this rejection from ‘normal’ society, goths have banded together to associate with other free thinkers. This has a beneficial effect on both the individual and society as a whole. For the individual they have a sense of belonging, and friends they can associate with. For society it removes one more misfit filled with rage from society’s streets.

This of course is not the case for all goths. Many goths today are goths for a variety of other reasons. They like the music, or the clubs are better, they have goth friends and joined in with them, or they just like staying up late nights and goths are the only ones awake to talk to.

The gothic stereotype

Many stereotypes of goths exist these days. It seems everyone has their own way to define ‘what is goth’. From the stereotypes based on clothing to music right up to the stereotypes of all goths being satanists or part of some kind of cult. Categorically, all of these are false.

The goth scene is just as widely varied as society in general. There are many different professions represented in the scene, from highly skilled professionals like doctors and lawyers, to tradesman, to technically minded people to clerical workers. Many different musical tastes exist (and not all of them goth, there is a HUGE 80’s following in the goth scene for some reason). The fashion varies vastly from goth to goth from the traditional flowing victorian style garments to the buckled and studded style regalia (also called industrial style, which is often closely related with goths, and have come to an understanding of co-existance, if uneasily at times).

How do I get into goth?

This is the simplest part of the page. Go check out our Community section over on the left, and use it to find out whats going on in your local area. Goths tend to be accepting and open minded. Just turn up to a club or event wearing all black and your already in the goth scene. You’ll pick it up as you go along (just a hint though, lay off the vampire comments!).

The gothic sense of humour is highly developed, and often leans toward the satirical. Quietly laughing at the more idiotic and less tolerant factions of society that seem to think yelling out of cars at us makes them cooler. Goths have learned to laugh at themselves and see society in a much different light. They have had to, and it is a trait most would not give up.

Goths have for the most part (not unanimously of course, but mostly) dropped all forms of prejudice. Noone is afraid within the goth scene to come out as being gay, and noone has to hide their religion for fear of scorn from their peers or zealots wanting to convert them from the arms of Satan. In fact because of these facts (and the general lack of prejudice) the goth scene has a large proportion of gays/bisexuals, and followers of non-mainstream religions and views. This of course is the most important aspect of gothdom, and why most goths became goths in the first place, tolerance.

But they think weird!

Ah, but this is the beauty of goths. Most subjects that are taboo in ‘normal’ society are freely discussed and debated about. Death, religion, magick, mysticism, and many other topics that are only roached carefully outside of the gothic community. Most goths have realised that fear is only a reaction instilled in us by dogmatic propaganda, and once you realise there is nothing to fear from the topic, whats to stop you discussing it?

Goths often revel in the fear given to them by society as a whole. Often the behavior exhibited by society to them based on society’s perception of them from stereotypes, rumour, etc are a constant source of entertainment. Of course, most of the rumours are totally unfounded, goths are people like everyone else, however when you already have a reputation, going for the shock factor is often far too tempting to see how much society at large is willing to believe (or deduce) with only a little encouragement.

This does not totally fall away once you get inside the scene unfortunately, and goths are all too often tempted to try for the shock factor within the scene (which turns out more tacky than shocking). Goths when you get down to it can be a rather pretentious bunch, trying for those extra ‘goth points’ on the gothier than thou scale, but it adds to the enjoyment.

History of Goth

Modern goth (ignoring where the name itself originally comes from) started in the early 80’s as part of the punk subculture (which is itself was a rejection of most societal values, and anything considered part of the ‘norm’). The phrase was coined by the band manager of Joy Division, Anthony H. Wilson, who described the band as ‘Gothic compared with the pop mainstream’. The term stuck, and as punk eventually died, Goth survived and became its own subculture. The punk clothing and hairstyles mellowed, and the core ‘rejection of society’ attitude alone lived on in the gothic subculture. Over time this itself has been modified to be more of a ‘no more blind acceptance of society’s values’ as opposed to rejection because it was there to be rejected (and because you could get away with it!).

Movies such as The Crow, and bands such as the Bauhaus helped establish the gothic image as dark, depressing, and even evil. As more and more ‘dark’ movies came out, numbers in the gothic subculture expanded, and there is now a gothic community in almost every major city around the world, and quite a number of towns have their own representative contingent. Nowdays there are more goth bands around than ever, and it has turned from an 80’s phenomenon into a 90’s way of life for many people. Unlike the punk subculture that it spawned from, there even exists a class of mature goths, still following the scene around even past their 20’s and into their 30’s and beyond.

Jul 27

gothic-girl.jpg

+ GENERAL QUESTIONS +


Q: What is Gothic?
A: This is one of the questions that gets asked the most. In the shortest definition it is a subculture that evolved from a musical scene to encompass art, literature, fashion and a shared ‘dark aesthetic’. For further information, please READ THIS POST.
There are also historical references to Gothic, including a germanic tribe dating back to the roman era, an architectural style and also a style in literature. These generally have little to do directly with the subculture, though many Goths enjoy the architectural and literary styles bearing the same name and the aesthetic similarities lended the name of the previous styles to the current subculture.

Just a final comment… you will probably find as many different explanations of what Goth is to the many participants within the scene. The scene generally is the sum of these various definitions, and there is no one true definition that will cover what it means to all those who are involved.

Q: Am I Gothic?
A: Generally if you wear and/or the exterior trappings that go with the subculture, and your musical interests reflect bands that are recognised within the scene and you feel at home within the scene and with it’s members and their views and outlooks on life, you might possibly be Gothic.

Please don’t get obsessed by fitting the label, truth be told that many people who are Goth or who associate themselves with the scene don’t call themselves Goths because they find it too limiting or find that others stereotype them based on that one label, rather than seeing the sum of the parts. Too often there are people that try too hard to fit the label and completely pass by the fact that being Goth is as much about being yourself and finding your own path rather than rigidly trying to fit the stereotypes.

Also, remember that “in the scene” generally means goths who are usually over 18, go gothic clubbing, and have several years experience within the subculture.

Q: Do I need to drink/smoke/have sex/do drugs/… to be Gothic?
A: This is a question I’ve fielded from some very young Goths from time to time. The general answer to all of them is NO. As with many things in the scene, or life in general, participation in such behaviour is something you need to decide for yourself as a personal choice… it is NOT a requirement to the scene. If people are pressuring you into doing any of these things when you’d rather not, I suggest you find some other friends/people to hang out with.

There are no real gothic drugs. A popular gothic stereotype is smoking clove cigarettes, but then again, many don’t smoke at all. People think that absinthe could be considered a gothic drink, but only in the romantic, poetic, “Walter Mitty” sense. I don’t know too many goths who are willing to imbibe absinthe (mostly because the taste is disgusting). As for sex, I don’t think there are too many people who have sex because they’re gothic. If people have sex it’s because they have sex. Gothic people just tend to be more tolerant of certain sexual practices like homosexuality and BDSM. It doesn’t mean that all goths are gay or bi or whip eachother, it’s just they understand if someone wants to do that with another person and that it’s none of their business. Society has taken this out of context and stereotyped goths as all being into ‘kinky’ sex, a stereotype that has played well recently for the MTV audience. And if someone tells you “all goths do (fill in the blank)” then you should pretty much ignore them, because everyone is different in their own way and groups of people can’t be pigeon-holed into stereotypes.
+ ABOUT GOTHIC FASHION +


Q: Does it have to be black?
A: While black is the predominant colour within the subculture, you don’t have to wear all black all the time if you don’t want to. Many goths wear items in jeweltone colours (dark blues, reds, purples, greens) or grey alongside the black. And there are quite a few Goths who have even made white look very gothic. So don’t let that stop you either.

All black is boring. And sometimes, depending on your skin colorations, black is not a color for you. It might even make you look sallow. If black does this to you, then don’t wear it. If you’re wearing black to be gothic, you’re missing the point. You want to look attractive in your eyes. If wearing black close to your face yellows your skin, don’t do it. Stick to jeweltones like burgundy, forest green or dark blue. Wear what makes you look attractive. Not what makes you look gothic.

Q: Does it need to be fetish/industrial/etc.?
A: No, it doesn’t. If you don’t like or don’t feel comfortable wearing pvc and vinyl, don’t. If you feel silly wearing period clothing, don’t. Develop your own style based on what you like and what you feel comfortable in. For some this means historical clothing, for others it’s the more industrial stompy boot look and for others again it’s black pants and a Bauhaus t-shirt.

Q: Do I have to have piercings/tattoos?
A: Only if you want them. The same advice goes for just about anything else, like whether you need to have black long hair or if you need to smoke/drink/do drugs to be considered a Goth.

Also remember that a lot of piercings connotes to some people that you are a masochist and you do it for sexual pleasure. To some, piercings are not a fashion statement. They’re an advertisement. The same goes for tattoos. So get something if you think it will be attractive on you. Highlight areas of your body that are attractive with little bits of metal if you want, but going overboard looks silly. Also, if you are underage, get parental consent. If a studio is busted for piercing a minor, it could put them out of business, so be courteous, respectful, and responsible.

Remember also that a piercing or tattoo studio that will pierce or tattoo minors without parental consent is breaking the law… and stop to consider the fact that if they don’t take the law too seriously, then what else they might not be taking too seriously. You really do not want to get body modifications done at a place that is lacking in responsibility for the legal system or hygiene. Get your modifications done at a good respectable place. If you cannot afford their rates wait and save your money! it is not worth running the risk of getting things like Hepatitus for a cheap modification… or a crappy quality tattoo or badly placed piercing.
+ ABOUT GOTHIC MUSIC +


Q: What music should I listen to?
A: The obvious answer here would be “whatever you like” as you’ll never enjoy something that you’re forced to listen to. If you want starting points for music within the Gothic genre, I’d recommend starting with some of the bands that started it all and remain the main staple including, but not limited to: Siouxsie and the Banshees, Bauhaus, Sisters of Mercy, Joy Division, The Cure, Christian Death, Clan of Xymox.

Other things that I recommend are compilation cd’s or box sets like the Goth Box (Cleopatra), This Is Goth (Cleopatra), Monsters of Goth (Cleopatra) or the Unquiet Grave series (Cleopatra) and compilations/label samplers like those put out by Neue Aesthetic Multimedia (Blackout A.D., Towards the Sky) and Projekt. You’re sure to find some artists in the mass that are presented on these discs that will appeal to you so you can explore further.

You also don’t have to like everything. Some people love Bauhaus and can’t stand the Sisters, that’s all a matter of personal preference. Then there’s people who lean more heavily towards darkwave, or ethereal, or ebm or industrial or deathrock. Choose your own path amongst the many out there.

Feb 21

Gothic art was a Medieval art movement that lasted about 200 years. It began in France out of the Romanesque period in the mid-12th century, concurrent with Gothic architecture found in Cathedrals. By the late 14th century, it had evolved towards a more secular and natural style known as International Gothic, which continued until the late 15th century, where it evolved into Renaissance art. The primary Gothic art mediums were sculpture, panel painting, stained glass, fresco and illuminated manuscript.

Overview

Gothic art told a narrative story through pictures, both Christian and secular.

The earliest Gothic art was Christian sculpture, born on the walls of Cathedrals and abbeys. Christian art was often typological in nature (see Medieval allegory), showing the stories of the New Testament and the Old Testament side by side. Saints’ lives were often depicted. Images of the Virgin Mary changed from the Byzantine iconic form to a more human and affectionate mother, cuddling her infant, swaying from her hip, and showing the refined manners of a well-born aristocratic court lady.

Secular art came in to its own during this period with the rise of cities, foundation of universities, increasing trade, a money-based economy and a bourgeois class who could afford to patronize the arts and commission works resulting in a proliferation of paintings and illuminated manuscripts. Increased literacy and a growing body of secular vernacular literature encouraged the representation of secular themes in art. With the growth of cities, trade guilds were formed and artists were often required to be members of a guild—as a result, because of better record keeping, more artists are known to us by name in this period than any previous, some artists were even so bold as to sign their names.

Gothic sculpture

Gothic sculpture was born on the wall, in the middle of the 12th century in Île-de-France, when Abbot Suger built the abbey at St. Denis (ca. 1140), considered the first Gothic building, and soon after the Chartres Cathedral (ca. 1145). Prior to this there had been no sculpture tradition in Ile-de-France—so sculptors were brought in from Burgundy, who created the revolutionary figures acting as columns in the Western (Royal) Portal of Chartres Cathedral (see image)—it was an entirely new invention, and would provide the model for a generation of sculptors.

The French ideas spread. In Germany, from 1225 at the Cathedral in Bamberg onward, the impact can be found everywhere. The Bamberg Cathedral had the largest assemblage of 13th century sculpture, culminating in 1240 with the Bamberg Rider, the first equestrian statue in Western art since the 6th century. In England the sculpture was more confined to tombs and non-figurine decorations (which can in part be blamed on Cistercian iconoclasm). In Italy there was still a Classical influence, but Gothic made inroads in the sculptures of pulpits such as the Pisa Baptistery pulpit (1269) and the Siena pulpit.

Gothic sculpture evolved from the early stiff and elongated style, still partly Romanesque, into a spatial and naturalistic feel in the late 12th and early 13th century. Influences from surviving ancient Greek and Roman sculptures were incorporated into the treatment of drapery, facial expression and pose.

Dutch-Burgundian sculptor Claus Sluter and the taste for naturalism signaled the beginning of the end of Gothic sculpture, evolving into the classicistic Renaissance style by the end of the 15th century.

Gothic painting

Painting in a style that can be called “Gothic” did not appear until about 1200, or nearly 50 years after the start of Gothic architecture and sculpture. The transition from Romanesque to Gothic is very imprecise and not at all a clear break, but we can see the beginnings of a style that is more somber, dark and emotional than the previous period. This transition occurs first in England and France around 1200, in Germany around 1220 and Italy around 1300.

Painting (the representation of images on a surface) during the Gothic period was practiced in 4 primary crafts: frescos, panel paintings, manuscript illumination and stained glass. Frescoes continued to be used as the main pictorial narrative craft on church walls in southern Europe as a continuation of early Christian and Romanesque traditions. In the north stained glass was the art of choice until the 15th century. Panel paintings began in Italy in the 13th century and spread throughout Europe, so by the 15th century they had become the dominate form supplanting even stained glass. Illuminated manuscripts represent the most complete record of Gothic painting, providing a record of styles in places where no monumental works have otherwise survived. Painting with oil on canvas does not become popular until the 15th and 16th centuries and was a hallmark of Renaissance art.

Gallery

Depiction of the Trinity on the portal of the Basilica of St.-Denis, Paris, France

Adam, Eve, and the (female) serpent at the entrance to Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France

 

Moses on the baptismal font by the sculptor Christoph von Urach, Church of Saint Amandus, Bad Urach, 1518

 

 

 

Feb 21

Here are the significant Gothic artists, listed chronologically.