Bela Lugosi's dead - just don't tell the Goths

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Q.� What exactly is Goth < xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

A.� If it's true that Rhythm And Blues had a baby and they called it Rock And Roll, then the argument expands to allow Punk Rock to have a baby, and call it Goth. It's one of a series of cult musical scenes that grew from the ashes of the Punk explosion, around the end of the seventies, and into the early eighties.

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Q.� Is there a defining 'birth' of Goth as a musical style, or fashion, in fact which is it

A.� There is a defining moment, and that is the release of the single Bela Lugosi's Dead by Bauhaus, in 1979. The musical sound and sartorial fashion went hand in hand, as is the way with popular trends. Young people enjoy anything that sets them apart from their parents, and bands them together as a distinct unit. Thus a new sound and look were perfect for the next generation who had seen the original fire and fury of punk fizzle out at the turn of the decade.

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Q.� Bauhaus, named after the German art school, sounds exotic.

A.� The name is, but the band hail from a somewhat less exotic locale, hitherto unknown as a hotbed of trend setting�- sunny Northampton.

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Q.� OK, moving swiftly on, what was so special about this record

A.� Taking the Hungarian actor who played the title role in the original Dracula movie, as a lyrical and visual template, Bauhaus managed to give birth to a youth cult all on its own. The lyrics, with standard horror imagery, struck a chord amongst a waiting faction of youth who began dressing all in black, using black nail varnish, white face makeup, black lipstick and eyeliner, lots of Celtic jewellery, and seeking out similarly doom-laden music as a soundtrack to their avoidance of direct sunlight, and love of old horror films.

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Q.� What about the boys

A.� I'm talking about the boys. Girls wore similar styles, and included fishnet stockings under floor-length billowing skirts, lacy gloves, and backcombed black hair.

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Q.� Where did things go from there

A.� As usual when a musical style is born, the rumble of a bandwagon was soon heard gathering speed across the country, and a previously disparate list of groups banded together under a common sonic umbrella. Manchester's Joy Division were aurally, if less visually, a perfect band for the Goth contingent, with their doomy self-absorbed lyrics and monotone rumbling backing, they were left-field and interesting enough to be adopted wholesale by the upcoming Goths. More visually on course were Siouxie And The Banshees who moved effortlessly from their punk roots to take up the Goth flag and wave it with considerable commercial success.

Q.� Any other bands to be aware of

A.� Possibly the longest serving of the Goth outfits is The Cure, who's visual persona in the shape of singer Robert Smith�- backcombed black hair, and smudged lipstick�- has remained, even though the band has slowly but surely moved more into the pop mainstream musically, picking up a fanatical following throughout Europe, particularly France, in the process. Others, like Southern Death Cult, metamorphosised into basic rock bands, in that band's case, evolution can be traced via the incredible shrinking name scenario,�through Death Cult, to The Cult. Cue American mega-sales and discreet abandonment of any lingering traces of Gothicity.

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Held in almost mythical reverence are The Sisters Of Mercy, offshoot of Goth heroes The Mission. The duo consisting of Andrew Eldritch (how Goth a name is that!) and Patricia Morrison held sway as the king and queen of Goth before splitting. Morrison took her bass and signed up with husband Dave Vanian's outfit The Damned, who in spite of Dave's penchant for frock coats, white face, and black widow's peak, are resolutely not a Goth band.

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Q.� Has the cult of Goth spilled over into other musical areas

A.� It has�- specifically into heavy metal. Because the two genres share an identical love of florid poetry, introspection, flamboyant appearance, and histrionic performance, it is natural that the heavier end of the Goth market would influence its metal cousins.�This can be heard in the works of Cradle Of Filth, Paradise Lost, Type O Negative, and holding up the American end, Christian Death. Beware of losing face by referring to Alice Cooper, Marilyn Manson, or Fields Of The Nephilim as serious Goth contenders; you are likely to arouse an unusual response in Goth circles�- amusement.

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�Andy Hughes