Growing steadily since its inception in the later 70s and early 80s, the Goth subculture is now one of the largest and most varied counter-culture groups in Western society. These days Goth comes in a variety of forms, styles and sounds, and although many members of the subculture will mix and match styles as they please, there are certain main categories of style a goth might follow. Don’t know your spooky kids from your cybergoths? Well join occasional Goth DJ and owner-of-too-many-corsets, Emma C S, so Goth she’s hung around with Bauhaus, in this guide to Goth spotting!

Trad Goths

 

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Sometimes also referred to as “80s Goths”, these people prefer the original, early Goth look which grew out of the punk rock scene. Big, back-combed hair and heavy makeup are preferred along with mostly black clothing, leather jackets or trench-coats, big boots and plenty of fishnet, this is a look heavily influenced by punk and by mainstream 80s fashion. Some go for large amounts of jewellery and piercings, others go for more minimal accessories, but studded collars and armlets are pretty common. Music is very important to Trad Goths, preferring early Goth music with bands like Bauhaus, Siouxsie and the Banshees, the Sisters of Mercy and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds will often be found on a Trad Goth’s favourites, but you’ll often find them hanging around the corners of clubs complaining about EBM (electronic body music, see below) and glow sticks, while they sip their snakebite. They will often talk about the 80s, even if they’re too young to remember the decade! Trad Goths who were around in the beginning, especially those who ever went to the famous Batcave Club, are often referred to as Elder Goths, and generally respected by other Goths.

RomantiGoths

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A shortening of “Romantic Goths” some people also call these guys Trad Goths since their style has more in common with the usual stereotype of a Goth. Their focus is more on the literature and poetry of the Victorian gothic movement, more interested in Byron than Bauhaus, they are often very creative. The Romantic look is all about recalling a lost ideal, their clothing often features a lot of lace and velvet drawing inspiration from Victoriana and Medieval gowns. Music-wise, Romantic gothic music tends to be more along the lines of ethereal Darkwave than straight Goth Rock, bands like All About Eve and Black Tape For a Blue Girl will probably get a RomantiGoth dancing, although more down-tempo Sisters or the Cure tracks are popular too. Sometimes they’re referred to as “Mopey Goths” because of their brooding image, but this is unfair, and frankly, it’s a label that gets attached to anyone who habitually wears black!

Death Rockers

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Death Rock first appeared in America as the first wave of British Goth was waning, and is a mixture of traditional Goth sounds and punk rock. Death Rockers themselves are one of the most recognisable groups in the subculture with their enormous “death-hawks”, a gothic variant of a Mohawk, layers of ripped fishnets and other tights and hundreds of piercings. As well as listening to 80s Goth bands, especially those who used to play at the Batcave, such as Alien Sex Fiend, Specimen and Christian Death, and of course Death Rock bands themselves, 45 Grave are a good example, Death Rockers will often seek out the nuttiest music on the scene, from psychobilly to electro, as long as it mentions zombies or bats somewhere, Death Rockers will probably like it. They’re one of the most underground groups in the scene, but are generally very friendly and have a wicked sense of humour.

Cybergoths

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Cybers are another very recognisable group in the scene, although most Goths seem to have a love ‘em or hate ‘em attitude. Cybers particularly like the EBM genre of music, a combination of Industrial and electronic rave music, which to be fair isn’t particularly gothic. You can identify a Cyber by their futuristic clothing, huge platform shoes, multicoloured hair-falls (synthetic dreadlocks), goggles and furry legwarmers, known as “fluffies” in the UK, you can usually spot them shaking their glow-sticks on the dance-floor, their outfits are usually a lot brighter than most Goths. As the name suggests, a lot of Cybers are very into anything futuristic and technological, from videogames to Japanese anime to sci-fi. Although Cybergoth might not seem to have much in common with the rest of the scene, Cybers, like most Goths, are trying to look a certain way and to appear as something more than human: where your average Goth might want to look like a vampire, Cybers are going for something closer to a cyborg! As their musical tastes run towards dance music, cybers are often confused with “gravers” that is, Goths who go to raves.

Rivetheads

Rivetheads aren’t technically Goths, but you’ll often see them stomping across the dance-floor at your local Goth haunt. Rivets are followers of the Industrial genre, an experimental electronic hybrid of Goth and metal, and while some purists will only listen to “pure” Industrial like SPK or Throbbing Gristle (after whose record label the genre is named), others will allow more dance-influenced bands like Skinny Puppy or metal-influenced acts like Nine Inch Nails or Rammstein, which often get played at Goth venues too. Rivet style is also commonly mistaken for Goth, with their preference for trench coats, big stompy boots and plenty of hardware. With their stark hairstyles, rivet guys often have the back and sides of their head shaved, and heavy, stamping dance style, they can be a little imposing, but start a conversation about dystopian sci-fi and you’ll usually make a friend.

Baby Bats

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Also known as Spooky Kids or Kindergoths, these are Goths who are new to the culture, usually still at school. Baby Bats often prefer more mainstream dark music, such as Marilyn Manson and HIM, and are thus also known as Mansonites, the term “Spooky Kids” originally coming from one of Manson’s albums, or with the emo scene. Their taste in mainstream music often leads to ridicule from other groups, especially as the media generally perceives these guys as what Goth is today. The “Mallgoth” mentality, buying “dark” clothing and accessories from high street chains and claiming to be subversive, also annoys a lot of Goths and members of other subcultures too, but Baby Bat style is usually an experimentation period as many Baby Bats develop more varied tastes. Many Goths view Baby Bat-friendly music as a gateway into more underground styles.

Perky Goths

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Perky Goths appear in almost every group, from Death Rock to Cyber, but they’re often treated as a separate one. Perky style is a deliberate departure from the dark and brooding mood associated with most Goths; Perkies love irony, cheese and silliness. Never taking themselves too seriously, Perkies often find the daftest way to dance to a song, will gravitate towards anything cute or cartoony, and seek out a wide variety of music, from 80s synthpop like Aha and the Eurythmics, over-the-top traditional Goth like Alien Sex Fiend and Specimen, or comedy acts like Voltaire and Mindless Self Indulgence. Most Goths have a little perkiness in them somewhere, but Perky Goths are the epitome of fun and always popular in the scene.

Hippie Goths

These are, as you might guess, Goths with a streak of hippie in them. They often wear hand made clothing in a variety of colours, occasionally even tie-dyed, and can be found poking around the New Age section of the bookstore. Many Goths identify as pagan, but Hippie Goths take their beliefs very seriously, and will usually own a Tarot deck or two and spend their money on incense and crystals. Hippie Goths are dedicated to the environment, often vegetarians. Musically, their tastes usually include ethereal and dark folk music, as well as pagan rock bands like Inkubus Sukkubus. There is often a fair amount of a cross-over between Hippie Goths, “Medieval” Goths and geekier Goths, with tendencies towards role playing and historical re-enactment.

Corp Goths

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This style started off as a way for Goths to tone down their look enough to be acceptable in the workplace but not lose their style. Some consider this a genre in its own right with Goths from the Cyber and fetish scene adopting the style in clubs, but others will adopt a Corp Goth style during the week and “Goth up” at weekends. Corp Goth style usually includes well-tailored or vintage suits, brocades, pin-stripe details and the odd bat, coffin or skull sneaked in for good measure. Though there isn’t really a music genre attached to the style, some gothic musicians have toyed with the look, from post-punk revival band Interpol with their smart shirts, to darkwave stars the Crüxshadows appearing onstage in bespoke suits, even Marylin Manson has made the Goth-in-a-suit look popular. The look is very popular and can be found almost everywhere, a colleague of my father’s even used to come to work in a PVC pinstripe suit!

Vampire Goths

You’ll come across one or two of these in every Goth club, Goths who will tell you over and over again that they really are vampires, no honestly they are, really! Though the connection between vampires and Goths has been there since the beginning, Bauhaus’ first single was called “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” after all, these guys take it to the extreme. Styling their appearance as closely as possible to something from Anne Rice’s novels or Hammer Horror movies, Vampire Goths will even wear fake fangs when out on the town. Since most Goth bands have released at least one vampire-related song, Vampire Goths have the pick of the pops, as it were. They can be great fun to be around, just so long as they don’t take it too seriously and make for your throat!

Historical Goths

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Some Goths choose to style themselves on specific periods rather than bands or movies, most commonly either Medieval or Victorian costumes. Some will go for historical accuracy and re-enactment, while others choose rather to evoke the mood of a period. Medieval Goths’ style can mix Tudor and Renaissance costuming, but most have a fixation with swords and mead! Victorian Goths prefer tea and parasols, many going for the most accurate look they can manage. Of course there’s a lot of cross-over with other Goth styles, but the main difference is that where others will pick and choose antique styles and combine them with other ideas, the Historical Goth tends to stick to one period only.

J-Goths

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J-Goth styles come from the Harajuku street fashions of Japan, where although gothic fashion abounds the music associated with it has more in common with glam, punk and pop, known as Visual Kei. One of the most popular J-Goth looks is the Gothic Lolita style, a look designed to make the wearer look as much as possible like a china doll, with elements of Lolita, Alice in Wonderland and French maids. Lolita fashion has struck a chord with westerners and many western Goths have started to combine the style with more traditional looks. Other J-Goth fashions, like the Elegant Gothic Aristocrat style, has more in common with the Victorian styles popular in the West.  

Steampunks

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Steampunk started off as a literary genre, an equivalent to cyberpunk but set during the golden age of steam-powered contraptions, usually combining science-fiction and fantasy elements. However the strong visuals of the genre soon grew into a subculture and although not all steampunks are Goths, there are many overlapping features, and steampunk-inspired outfits are becoming an increasingly common sight in clubs. Steampunk takes its cues from Victorian and Edwardian fashion, but unlike the dark colour-scheme favoured by most Goths, steampunks usually prefer brown and sepia tones, picked out with brass accessories. Cogs, bits of clocks, goggles and leather are common steam materials, with an emphasis on home made and DIY works. Steampunks are always impressive and tend to carry around accessories with endless possibilities for fun, someone arrived at the local Goth club last month carrying a home-made ray gun prop! Although there isn’t really any steampunk music as such, some bands flirt with steampunk styles, particularly Industrial group Abney Park, singer and violinist Emilie Autumn, and string Industrial group Rasputina.

Gothabilly

A fusion of psychobilly with gothic imagery, the Gothabilly’s tastes usually include psychobilly favourites like the Cramps and the Horrorpops as well as genre-specific bands like the Cult of the Psychic Fetus, Psychonauts and Nekromantix. In terms of fashion, Gothabillies choose 50s inspired outfits and tattoo art, weather-beaten hats and leather jackets, with women’s hairstyles with a heavy fringe (bangs, for the Americans out there) resembling Betty Paige. The style is very popular in the Californian Goth scene, but hasn’t really broken into British Goth as yet, so I confess it’s a little of a mystery to me.

Dark Cabaret

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Dark Cabaret has long been clawing at the edges of Goth, with inspirational artists like David Bowie and Klaus Nomi adding cabaret-influences to their work. When Goth took hold in the 80s, some gothic artists also toyed with the genre, most notably Andi Sexgang on his solo album Arco Valley and Siouxsie and the Banshees on their single “Peek-a-boo”. Recently it has become a genre in its own right, with artists like the Dresden Dolls, Voltaire and the Deadfly Ensemble combining gothic imagery, social commentary and a retro feel. In terms of fashion, dark cabaret enthusiasts can be seen sporting burlesque-style corsets, stockings and bustles along with bowler hats and heavy makeup, the key here to appear classy but sexy, a femme fatale look for the girls and a mime-like figure for guys.