Rock & Pop (C)

Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a genre of rock music that evolved out of post-punk during the late 1970s. Originally considered just a label for a small handful of punk rock/post-punk bands, goth only began to be defined as a separate movement in 1981. more...

While most punk bands focused on aggressive, outward rock, the early gothic bands were more introspective, concerned with aesthetics, and personal, with elements that can be traced to much older literary movements such as gothic horror, Romanticism, existential philosophy, and the philosophical construct of nihilism. Notable gothic rock bands include Bauhaus (considered one of the first), Siouxsie & the Banshees, The Cure, The Sisters of Mercy, and Fields of the Nephilim.

Largely separate from other genres of alternative rock that developed during the 1980s, the original gothic rock scene gave birth to the goth subculture, which has a presence in many areas of the world today.

First generation (c. 1979–c. 1985)

Associating the goth subculture with the first generation of goth bands can be troublesome. Since the adjective "gothic" was used to describe the sound of specific punk, post punk, and new wave bands, not all punks and new wavers who liked these groups associated themselves with a goth scene; regardless these early groups are where goth rock traces its origins. What is most notable about the core 1970s and 1980s bands is that, typical to their punk roots, they had a general distaste for labels, presumably seeing such things as anathema to creative expression .

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