Michael Hann

In praise of goths – the most enduring of pop subcultures

How this grassroots northern scene – laughed at, ignored, dismissed – took over the world

Goth pioneer Peter Murphy performing with his band Bauhaus at the Futurama 3 festival, Stafford, in 1981. Credit: Steve Rapport/Getty Images  
issue 27 May 2023

More than 40 years on, every town still has them, wandering the streets with pale skin, more make-up than you can find in Superdrug, swathed in acres of black fabric. Goths, rather unexpectedly, have turned out to be the great survivors among pop subcultures. Others have risen and faded, but the goths – laughed at, ignored, dismissed – have endured, seeing their style and their musical tastes slowly incorporated by everyone else (there’s even a goth version of hip-hop, known as ‘horrorcore’).

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