Teen Gothic

From the dead zone let your bats fly!

Gripes, grievances and griefs. All welcome here.

I'm a little distracted and preoccupied this week with a funeral coming up in a couple of days. The inspiration to be entertaining or funny in the OP just isn't there. I can't even be mad enough to complain about something.

So have at it.

A few days ago a long-term friend and fellow local DJ passed away from cancer. Alec you will be missed by many and had a massive impact on the Adelaide scene as an event organiser, DJ and attendee from the late 00s (possibly sooner) to now.

Then a couple of days later my cat died. Not a great week.

Sometimes it feels like all I am doing is collecting a list of the dead. One day I'll be on other peoples' lists too. Don't plan on it happening any time soon but who knows. Life throws curveballs.

I hope things are going better for everyone else out there. If not, you are in the right place to express yourself.

Grind those spiders and release those bats, it's Seething Sunday again!

Feeling mad, bad and have things dangerous to know? We are here for the telling.

A goth was singing as they walked into a bar.

"Hey now, hey now OWWWWWW!"

If that terrible joke offends you I know a place you can complain about it. Or you can tell us what ails and irritates you this week instead.

Gnash your bats and jerk your spiders, it is that time of the week again. Did that sound rude? Probably. But I am expecting rude in the comments as people get those gothic gripes and other mournful maladies out there and exposed anyway. Unload that burden and fish for some sympathy if you must. We're all mad/sad/glad/plaid here.

So they post a list of bands they think that are goth. Except it is mostly wrong. They get one band right because it is the one band they always get right.

That one band is The Cure – the most well known and popular goth* band of all time. Everyone knows who they are. The most cookie cutter of the cookie cutter five. Cureheads were a thing for a reason.

So they have one goth band on the list and a bunch of non-goth bands. The non-goth bands sound nothing like The Cure yet they still think they are goth. Like… how?!? Why?!?

You get one right, you could have looked at similar from there. But no, easier to force a bunch of non-goth with dark themes in and call it a day. Then post that list in goth spaces and be all shocked when told most of it isn't goth.

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*The Cure released some goth albums and evolved away from the sound. But they still count. People count The Damned with only 1 goth album after all (that is mostly new wave) and The Cure made a lot more goth music than that. I don't get the recent trend of denying The Cure being goth at least at one point.

(Yeah I'm being lazy this week, sue me)

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Genre Police, we are here to tell you
That your favourite songs belong somewhere else
I know that you like it just because you do
But I'm here to take the fun out just for you

Whether we are right, even if we're wrong
We'll still tell you all the facts about the song
This is what we do, we are here to stay
Genre police, we're here to save the day

​

The song isn't remotely goth but the lyrics work so well for any music subculture. So if you have nothing better to be mad about today you can be mad about that. Or not, I'm not your minder.

Somebody once told me gatekeepers are gonna roll me
I ain't the darkest goth in the club
She was looking kind of calm with her extended out-turned palm
While gazing up on display on her forehead

Well the years start coming and I don't stop romancing
Bled to the rules and I hit the ground dancing
Didn't make sense not to live for goth
Your brain gets smart but your soul gets lost
So much to do, so much to hear
So what's wrong with goth music all year?
You'll never know if you don't try
You'll never goth if you don't sigh

Hey now
Hey now now
You're a goth now
Go play…

So there is a goth/post punk/darkwave event happening here today. A daytime event on a Sunday. Pretty great idea if you ask me and I have tried to get stuff like this happening before. Even better the 2 DJs include one of the members of This Cold Night (local Adelaide Darkwave band many of you have heard of, they have been posted in r/goth before) and the other plays alt music on a local community radio station. So they know what they are doing and we will get what is advertised. This is my kind of event – during the day on a Sunday like the record club days but music I like to play myself and someone else is playing it.

The problem? This seems to be a last minute thrown together thing as no one knew about it until today. Instead of being there right now enjoying some great music and having a beer tor two I am here writing this post. If I had a few days notice I could have prepared and gone to it and I an sure most other people are in the same boat. I am hopeful it will happen again as one of the DJs saw my post sharing the event and liked it. I am following them now so hopefully I get more prior warning next time.

Not quite seething but certainly annoyed at the missed opportunity. This is why we promote our events.