Where to start with UK Goth
UK Goth is a music scene from London, Leeds, Northampton, UK, 1978–1985. Its principal artists include Bauhaus, Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Sisters of Mercy and The Cure. This issue covers 10 essential albums and 14 dated events.
Start here
- 1
The Scream
Siouxsie and the Banshees · 1978Original release: Polydor · POLD 5009 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1978It pioneered gothic rock's atmospheric intensity and unconventional guitar/drum interplay before the genre even had a name.
- 2
In the Flat Field
Bauhaus · 1980Original release: 4AD · CAD 13 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1980Often considered the first true gothic rock album, it captured the claustrophobic intensity that defined the genre.
- 3
First and Last and Always
The Sisters of Mercy · 1985Original release: wea · 240 616-1 · 12″ Vinyl · Europe 1985It captured goth's commercial peak, with mechanized rhythms and cathedral reverb reaching their fullest expression.
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- 4
Closer
Joy Division · 1980Original release: Factory · FACT 25 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1980Final Joy Division album noted for 'dark strokes of gothic rock' by Sounds; Martin Hannett's cavernous production influenced countless goth records that followed.
- 5
Juju
Siouxsie and the Banshees · 1981Original release: Polydor · POLS 1034 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1981Unintentional concept album that defined gothic rock's sonic vocabulary with John McGeoch's effects-laden guitar and tribal drumming.
- 6
Mask
Bauhaus · 1981Original release: Beggars Banquet · BEGA 29 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1981Expanded Bauhaus's sound with keyboards, saxophone, and acoustic guitar; the title track's music video, shot in an abandoned Victorian factory, became iconic.
- 7
Pornography
The Cure · 1982Original release: Fiction · FIXD 7 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1982The Cure's gothic piece de resistance opened with the line 'It doesn't matter if we all die'; an oppressively dispirited masterwork that cemented the band's dark credentials for good.
- 8
A Kiss in the Dreamhouse
Siouxsie and the Banshees · 1982Original release: Polydor · POLD 5064 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1982A psychedelic departure featuring strings and diverse instrumentation, NME called it music that 'will take your breath away.' Recorded during what Uncut later called the band's 'imperial phase,' the album…
For the obsessed
- 9
Floodland
The Sisters of Mercy · 1987Original release: WEA Records · 242232-1 · 12″ Vinyl · UK 1987Andrew Eldritch's solo Sisters album shifted toward Wagnerian atmospherics; 'This Corrosion' brought goth to Top of the Pops backed by a fifty-piece choir.
- 10
Disintegration
The Cure · 1989Original release: Fiction · 839 353-1 · 12″ Vinyl · Europe 1989A return to darker form that reached number three in the UK and number twelve in the US; 'Lovesong' reached number two on the Billboard Hot 100, proving gothic atmospherics could climb American charts too.
The stories behind every record are in UK Goth, a members' issue.