![]() Goth is the community of the darkly inclined. The reason why I've been drawn to the subculture is not because of its music or the traditional aspects of the subculture that are directly related to the music- I couldn't care less about hair dye, spikes, and deathrock. Maybe it started that way, and a true Goth knows the history and significance of the traditional bands, but it's evolved beyond that now. Of course, realistically, Goth is not a subculture that surrounds the music. I guess I'm SO unconventional and non-conformist, I listen to music that even Goths have never heard of! (hahahaha.) I also wish more Goths were into dark fantasy music. I haven't wanted to consider myself "Goth" (like I haven't wanted to consider myself "Wiccan"), because I don't fit that one requirement. I sort of wish that I liked the traditional artists a little more, because then I could share that with other Goths and feel more apart of the community. Nox Arcana is the kind of music you'd waltz to under a full moon in a velvet cape, not headbang to in fishnets and spikes, but still! Seriously, if Goths don't listen to it, who would? It's very, very creepy music! Of course, Nox Arcana wouldn't appeal to all Goths. On, there is a list of other artists that Goths listen to besides the traditional ones. Liking for music such as Nox Arcana's (and other dark music by fantasy artists) comes naturally for me, just as liking for Siouxie and the Banshees, Bauhaus, and the Cure comes naturally to other Goths. What confuses me is that Nox Arcana is not commonly listened to in the gothic community. I'd listen to gothic rock if it came on, certainly, but it's not the kind of thing that I would download and listen to on a daily basis. The writer of a response blog to thisisnotgoth was a member of the original scene, and believes that appreciation of that kind of music comes naturally to darkly inclined people, like a tendency to wear black (I agree with many of her opinions, but not this one). I'm already warming up to Nightwish (which isn't a Goth band, to be clear). Of course, that's because I'm a babybat, right? Of course it is! I wasn't alive during the heydays of the music, so what do I know? Maybe I'll warm up to it eventually. Why consider yourself part of a music-based subculture if you don't actually listen to the music? I understand their argument, but although the music may have been the essence of what Goth is two decades ago, I believe it isn't anymore. Some Goths believe that you have to like at least one song by one traditional artist to call yourself "Goth". ![]() (Think of the Goths from South Park- "To be one of the non-conformists, you have to dress like us and listen to the same music that we do." How ironic is that?) There are no rules to being Goth, EXCEPT. This elitist attitude goes against the point of being Goth, which is to be original, authentic, unconventional, and non-conformitive. There are also plenty of elitist Goths that believe that unless you look/act/think a certain way, you're "not Goth enough". There are some people (like the tumblr blogger thisisnotgoth) who believe that things are truly "Goth" only if they relate directly to the eighties music scene. The word "Goth" technically refers to a subculture that developed around eighties' post-punk music. The only question the tag DOESN'T ask, for whatever reason, is why are you Goth? There can be a LOT of different answers to this question, and that depends on what your definition of Goth is.
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