So, music of the goth genre...

[samaritan1975]

... what makes it so?

What bands/CDs/tracks warrant a listen?

I've been perusing SwapaCD.com, and am looking to expand my horizons.

Comments

[hollowindigo.livejournal.com]

I am far from my gothic glory days...but back in the day I listened to:

Sisters of Mercy
Faith & the Muse
London After Midnight
Swtichblade Symphony
Lacrimosa
Lights of Euphoria
Depeche Mode
VNV Nation
The Cruxshadows
Covenant
Assemblage 23
Apoptygma Berzerk
Beborn Beton

I still do listen to these bands just not as diehard.

[samaritan1975.livejournal.com]

Ah, I actually have one of Apoptygma Berzerk's albums... "Welcome to Earth". I recall picking it up when I worked at Tower Records... I think it was touted as electronica. That seems to jive with what asimaiyat says below (re: style and genre not being mutually exclusive).

Certainly know Depeche Mode... never realized that they might be considered 'goth'.

Thanks for the suggestions! :)

[asimaiyat.livejournal.com]

tl;dr response:

I think of Goth as more of a style than a genre -- there's goth rock, goth synth-pop, goth techno, etc. It's sort of like Film Noir, which is an aesthetic style that can be applied to anything from a crime story like [i]The Asphalt Jungle[/i] to a domestic drama like [i]Mildred Pierce[/i].

The characteristics of the Goth style have changed over the years, but if we're making a list I'll include a certain kind of vocal intonation (think Bauhaus), primarily minor keys, an emphasis on melodic beauty (depending on whether Industrial counts as Goth, of course), and lyrics that are, um, gothic. Obviously not all Gothic songs are about death and despair, but even a happy Goth song generally reflects the Goth philosophy of finding beauty in perverse places. The best example I can think of of this is "Friday I'm In Love" by the Cure, which is a wonderful happy love song, but if you listen to the lyrics, the theme is that it's okay if six days of the week are miserable as long as one day a week he gets to see his lover. Misery is the rule, not the exception. Contrary to what my husband believes, this is totally different from Emo, which tends to feature singers who seem to think that they're the first guy whose girlfriend ever left him. ;)

Anyway, if you're looking for bands to check out, try Siouxsie and the Banshees, She Wants Revenge, and Iris. A new one I really like is De/Vision, but they're just breaking through to the US so it might be harder to track down their albums.

[samaritan1975.livejournal.com]

Interesting point- I suppose I should know better, since shoegazing holds a similar point in terms of being able to be considered a style, rather than a genre.

That reminds me... emo. I mean, I get what's 'meant' by it, but I have no examples of what's considered emo. Is it what I call shoegazing (My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, Colfax Abbey, Auburn Lull, Stars of the Lid, etc.)?

[asimaiyat.livejournal.com]

I don't know any of those bands, but I don't think of shoegazing as the same as emo. Emo is like My Chemical Romance and Dashboard Confessional. It's a derivative of hardcore punk that got more melodic and lyrics-focused along the way. I'm not much of a fan of the genre, so I'm not really the best person to try to explain it, obviously. :)

[impeccablesimon.livejournal.com]

You can also check out Echo and the Bunnymen. I'm not a PIB (Person in Black), but I do enjoy some of the music.

Some of my favorites are Bauhaus, Souxsie and the Banshees, The Cure and Depeche Mode. Duh, the popular ones. ;)

[darktouch.livejournal.com]

My goth stage was all.. Cruxshadows, Peter Murphy, and Rasputina. I could arguably slide Tori Amos and Evanesence in there.. but there are very strong arguements that my understanding of Goth is flawed at a fundamental level. Primarily my lack of deep anguish in my life.