With operatic vocals and pounding, almost tribal rhythms, Theatre of Hate would seem an obvious fit for the goth scene. The band were never part of the inner core of the scene, but they created their own unique world that saw their songs become goth club staples. Formed in London in 1980, they had a brief taste of success before splitting in 1983. Lead singer Kirk Brandon went on to form Spear of Destiny, a more stadium-oriented project that aimed to match the success of U2 but never quite succeeded.

The first chapter of the book begins with an imagined club night in late-seventies/early eighties Britain. It is a scene of nicotine, damp and strip lights – dusky, dark, dangerous and fun. Goth brought sex to the punk scene, challenging propriety with its gender blurring and kinky aesthetic. It was as much about style as about music; one of its most important touchstones was David Bowie. And yet, as modern as it seemed, it harked back to a distant past, as the next chapter will begin to show.

Glam was not the only inspiration from the 1970s that would influence the post-punk and gothic. There are many aspects of the cultural and musical core of the late-twentieth century that became part of goth. Hawkwind had a haunting, extra-terrestrial sound that influenced key bands such as Killing Joke, Joy Division and The Sisters of Mercy. And in a post-Bowie era, the search for a replacement found a candidate in Doctors of Madness. Meanwhile in post-war Germany, the nation was forming their own musical culture, which would also have a profound effect on the post-punk scene.

Einstürzende Neubauten are a band like no other. Their name translates as ‘collapsing new buildings’, which is fitting for a group that have deconstructed music and put it back together again. Fronted by the mysterious and charismatic Blixa Bargeld, the band originated in the post-punk scene of 1970s West Berlin, but their artistic journey has taken them from clattering industrial noise to stark, neo-classical beauty, all of it wrapped up in a Dada package. Still recording and performing in their sixties, the band retain an unsettling sensuality and a unique power to surprise.

The Sisters of Mercy firmly rejected the label goth, but if they were not a goth band who were? This chapter looks at group and the city that spawned them. Leeds in the 1970s and 1980s was the bastion of a ‘dark alternative’ culture, thanks in part to the Phonographique club. The Sisters of Mercy embodied all its intrigue and contradictions, fusing rock music with a sort of dislocated disco. Their music was stark and haunting, and it found an ideal frontman in Andrew Eldritch, a brooding Romantic poet who used his lack of conventional musical knowledge to his advantage. The Sisters split up in 1986, but Leeds remained a hub of musical activity, producing exciting acts such as The March Violets and Red Lorry Yellow Lorry.

The Cure are one of the most iconic bands in the history of goth, thanks in large part to the unique style of frontman Robert Smith. This chapter explores their history. Inspired, like many, by the explosion of punk music in the 1970s, the band nonetheless charted a distinctive path, producing albums that were dark, atmospheric and yet often strikingly catchy. Their 1989 album Disintegration sold a million copies, turning them into unlikely stadium rockers. Still active today, they remain one of the key influences on post-punk and goth.

The final chapter of the book looks at goth today. Twenty-first-century goth is a dark cultural shade that anyone can add to their style, even Rihanna and Kim Kardashian. Bands such as Mogwai and Savages have distinct goth elements, as do many films, 2022’s The Batman being a notable example. And goth influencers can be found all over social media. Goth is perfect for a visual age, one in which music plays less of a central role in forming culture. Like so many other trends, it has split into myriad micro scenes. And while the mainstream has cynically appropriated the surface of this darkly attractive form, the energy of post-punk and the alternative still lurk beneath.

This chapter focuses on Adam Ant, a captivating and darkly intense performer who emerged from the Big Bang of punk with his own style. Personifying sex and danger, Adam did much to develop the goth prototype. He was greeted with vitriol by some of the music press, but he and his band mates pursued their own path, characterised by art school rock and S&M visuals. In a remarkable career, Adam was the bridge between the end of glam, the beginning of punk and the brave new world of post-punk. He provided a gateway to the goth scene that he was a key influence on.

This chapter reflects on the advent of punk in the 1970s and its significance for goth. The energy that punk released inspired a generation of music lovers to explore dark new possibilities. In the early stages, the scene was centred on the boutique that Malcolm McLaren and Vivienne Westwood ran at 430 King’s Road in Chelsea, where creative sparks flew and wild ideas coalesced. The arrival of Sex Pistols marked the explosion of punk music, but the scene soon began to fragment.

This chapter moves away from the focus on individual bands to look at two seminal clubs that marked a north-south divide in the emerging goth phenomenon: The Batcave in London and Le Phonographique in Leeds. Le Phonographique took form in 1979 and became a focal point for shadowy groups at the darker end of the post-punk spectrum. Founded in 1982, The Batcave was a breeding ground for darker, artier bands, among them Sex Gang Children.

The 1980s and 1990s witnessed the rise of generation of bands marked by goth without being part of the goth scene themselves. This chapter offers brief biographies of some of the most notable, including The Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Jesus and Mary Chain, My Bloody Valentine, Cocteau Twins and PJ Harvey.

This chapter traces another important thread in the history of goth: industrial music. Beginning with COUM Transmissions’ notorious performance at the ICA in 1976, which made the furore over Sex Pistols seem comparatively tame, the chapter recounts the origins of industrial pioneers Throbbing Gristle. Growing out of a wider art project, the band released three albums in its brief initial period before splitting in 1981. They spawned a remarkable proto-scene that blossomed in the post-punk era and formed the inspiration for future groups such as Nine Inch Nails.

This chapter begins in the heart of the Roman Empire, where the collapse of Rome was precipitated by the arrival of the Goths. Ever since, the term has been associated with a walk on the dark side. In the medieval era, Gothic cathedrals defied the expected, exhibiting dramatic stained-glass windows and imposing stone gargoyles. This gothic influence extended not just to architecture, but through time into media. The eighteenth- and nineteenth-century Gothic revival was an inspiration to numerous writers, leading to the windswept moors of Wuthering Heights and the monstrous loneliness of Frankenstein. The Gothic imagination was hugely influential, and this extends to the rock music of today.

The United States had its own goth moment in the 1980s, one coloured by the country’s distinct rock’n’roll history and the cult of Southern Gothic. Punk and post-punk were less of an explosion in this geographically vast territory than they were in the UK, but little by little they had their effect, galvanising an amazing array of micro scenes. This chapter explores a number of goth and goth-adjacent bands and artists, including Black Flag, The Germs, Misfits, Lydia Lunch and Swans.

In a Europe that was full of fear, Gothic horror became its own genre. The Romantic Era encouraged the expression of emotions through art, resulting in its own century-long artistic revolution. Romantics like John Keats and William Blake led the sort of thinking that sparked the pre-industrial revolution, critiquing child labour and the destruction of nature. Other poets began to introduce elements of horror into their work. This chapter explores the gothic connection between poems, history and horror.

One of the major artists of the present times, Nick Cave is a master of dark energies and an icon of the goth world, though it is a term he rejects. This chapter traces his progress from his early days with short-lived Melbourne provocateurs The Birthday Party to his current status as a global star. Cave’s powerful imagery and emotional content mark him out as one of the finest lyricists of his generation. His iconic status has been achieved without ever compromising his unique and unholy vision – a vision that makes him one of the central pillars of modern gothic.

Gothic darkness and violence can be found throughout history, from Ancient Rome to Greek mythology. Dionysus, the god of the grape harvest, was the protector of those who stood outside of conventional society, and symbolised chaos and danger. Rock legend Jim Morrison embodied the hedonistic nature of Dionysus, providing a template for the modern goth rock star. Back in Rome, there was a fascination with dark and gory entertainment. Rome’s downfall sparked an era of superstition, witchcraft and dark imagination. This age of fear resulted in a wealth of inspiration for modern poets with a flare for the Gothic.

Coming up alongside U2, the Virgin Prunes never achieved the massive success of their contemporaries, but they left a major mark on the city of Dublin. They integrated tribal rhythms, mutoid disco and dissonance with captivating vocals. Benefitting from the explosion of punk, they nevertheless remained apart from it, embracing a contrary artfulness that saw them loved by a few but ridiculed by many more. The band split up in 1986, but their avant-garde stylings were to inspire many followers.

This chapter explores the unclassifiable rock band Killing Joke. Formed in Notting Hill in the late 1970s by Jaz Coleman, Kevin ‘Geordie’ Walker, Martin ‘Youth’ Glover and ‘Big’ Paul Ferguson, the band emerged from the punk scene but encompassed a wide range of influences, from dub to krautrock and disco. Their brand of shamanic dance rock was to prove extremely influential, as was the dark vision of lead singer Jaz Coleman, a true rock original.