What is Goth?

[Brenda Starrr]

In your opinions, what is goth? What does it mean to be goth? How do you think that you are more goth than others? All input is appreciated, as I would love to know what everyone thinks of this subject. Keep it civil. I know how passionate we can all be.

[Homicidalheathen]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goth_music

[Homicidalheathen]

Hee hee I am an elder goth ya frickin posers.

Elder goths

An elder goth is a senior member of the goth subculture, usually between the ages of 29 and 40. Elder goths are generally longtime veterans of the scene, perhaps going back to the Batcave era.

Elder goths are more likely to draw upon the artistic aspects of the scene, in contrast to their younger counterparts who are sometimes motivated to act for shock value. Older goths may regard those who act in this ways as poseurs. An elder goth may refuse to acknowledge them as fellow goths. In contrast to the stereotypical image of a goth as a maladjusted outcast loner, some elders are married with families, and most have close knit ties with other members of the subculture.

[Homicidalheathen]

Oh, I realized you wanted our own opinions but this one summed it up for me:

'Many people lead unhappy, unachieved lives. And that's sad. Goth makes depression and angst a lifestyle choice, and that's art. ;-)'

Found here:

http://www.sfgoth.com/primer/

Honestly, I thought this discription was kinda funny, but true!

[BillyDeath]

I'm an elder goth.

[Hellion]

Hee hee I am an elder goth ya frickin posers.

Elder goths

An elder goth is a senior member of the goth subculture, usually between the ages of 29 and 40. Elder goths are generally longtime veterans of the scene, perhaps going back to the Batcave era.

Elder goths are more likely to draw upon the artistic aspects of the scene, in contrast to their younger counterparts who are sometimes motivated to act for shock value. Older goths may regard those who act in this ways as poseurs. An elder goth may refuse to acknowledge them as fellow goths. In contrast to the stereotypical image of a goth as a maladjusted outcast loner, some elders are married with families, and most have close knit ties with other members of the subculture.

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:devil Very well said.

[DarkVampire]

Goth? I'm just a person that likes to dress in black, listen to dark music and read and write dark literature.

[Hellion]

Goth? I'm just a person that likes to dress in black, listen to dark music and read and write dark literature.

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:devil same here,no mainstream for me.no pop.

[Anathema]

Hee hee I am an elder goth ya frickin posers.

Elder goths

An elder goth is a senior member of the goth subculture, usually between the ages of 29 and 40. Elder goths are generally longtime veterans of the scene, perhaps going back to the Batcave era.

Elder goths are more likely to draw upon the artistic aspects of the scene, in contrast to their younger counterparts who are sometimes motivated to act for shock value. Older goths may regard those who act in this ways as poseurs. An elder goth may refuse to acknowledge them as fellow goths. In contrast to the stereotypical image of a goth as a maladjusted outcast loner, some elders are married with families, and most have close knit ties with other members of the subculture.

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I resemble that tangent. Here here! Wow, you remember the Batcave era to then hu? I raise my glass to you, cheers baby, cheers.

[odims_sphere]

Posh spice was goth. She always dressed in black.

[BillyDeath]

Johnny Cash dressed in black they called him the man in black.

[Homicidalheathen]

I still live in a bat cave.....

[Steven]

Johnny Cash dressed in black they called him the man in black.

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Johnny was the real deal, with nuts of steel, and they don't make em like that anymore. How I wish they still did.....

[Brenda Starrr]

I loved Johnny. That man was goth. He just sang country. I miss him still.

[Joey Deadcat]

The dark side of rock & roll.

[phee]

The dark side of rock & roll.

Or

The Goths (Gothic: , Gutans) were an East Germanic tribe who from the 2nd century settled Scythia, Dacia and Pannonia. In the 3rd and 4th centuries, they harried Byzantium and later adopted Arianism. In the 5th and 6th centuries, split into the Visigoths and the Ostrogoths, they established powerful follower-states of the Roman Empire in Iberia and Italy.

[DarkVampire]

Johnny Cash is country goth.

[Brenda Starrr]

Johnny Cash is country goth.

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And he fucking ruled.

[DarkVampire]

Damn straight. :cheerful

[Joey Deadcat]

Hank Williams also had some dark tunes.

[Joey Deadcat]

And this might be kinda helpful, too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deathrock

[Scary Guy]

Goth is anything related to the darker side/things of life. Goths are anyone who can appreciate the beauty in/of the darker side/things of life. I learned this a while ago and it still is the best description I can find.

What makes someone more goth than someone else. You look at them and you can see how much of a poseur they are on sight.

Good examples related to music are Evanescence, which seems to me to be completely fake (not just because the mainstream accepts it either) vs. Lacuna Coil, which is more goth than they are (I think they ripped everything they are off LC) and generally considdered to be more of a metal band.

Marylin Manson IS goth though most true goths don't like to admit it.

There is also a huge difference in being a goth and being a "freak". Most of the poseurs are actually "freaks" and will probably grow out of it.

http://www.gothic-charm-school.com/ has lots of good info for those looking.

[phee]

Marylin Manson is goth... I just don't like him

[Blackmail]

In the end, it doesn't really matter. If you want to call yourself goth it is fine. If you want to call VNV Nation a goth band it isn't against the law. I have personally never called myself goth and never understood the need to.

But to some, especially people around when the goth musical movement began - Goth is not whatever you want it to be.

Go to a University prof and ask him/her what gothic literature is and here's a hint: it's not Clive Barker.

Another thing is, Joey Deadcat has been right the whole time, at least in a technical sense. VNV Nation is not goth. VNV Nation don't even claim to be goth. Goth is an actual musical movement started in the late 70's and was a cousin to punk. It may be influenced in style by historical and literary gothic periods, but it's certainly not what people today claim it is, in the opinion of the vast majority of 'original goths'.

I think trying to find where and how Industrial and Goth became intertwined would be where we find our answers as to how Synthpop, Futurepop, EBM and Type O Negative somehow are now considered goth. If you go by the definition that anything dark is goth, then Roy Orbison was a goth. Obviously he is not goth so the definition should be more broad than "anything dark".

[Blackmail]

Marylin Manson is goth... I just don't like him

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You can make an argument that Manson is merely dark glam rock. It's certainly more polished than the original goth bands, so you could say Manson is to Goth what Blink 182 is to punk.