Gothic Rock
tagStarted 1979Peak 1982-1990Last big hit still active
Located in 1 route
The foundational British strain: icy, chorus-and-flange guitars chiming over high, melodic basslines and a relentless drum machine or driving rock kit. Baritone or wailing vocals deliver doom-laden romanticism. Built from post-punk's chill, it trades aggression for cathedral-sized reverb, processional tempos and a brooding, ceremonial grandeur.
History
Coined as bands like Bauhaus, the Sisters of Mercy and the Cure darkened post-punk into a distinct form. Leeds and the Batcave club incubated it; the Sisters' Doktor Avalanche drum machine and Eldritch's growl set the template. Fields of the Nephilim and the Mission carried it into wide-screen, near-mythic territory through the late 1980s, defining the genre's mature sound.
Defining artists
Essential listening
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gothic_rock
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Corrosion
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fields_of_the_Nephilim
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mission_(band)