Hateful Chains

Influences Part II

I've written a lot about my earlier influences but there's still a lot to cover. When I realised there was a separate music genre called Goth, I of course set out to find out what it is. And that's where I found Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure, Joy Division, The Sisters of Mercy, all the oldies but goldies, and then there were the classics of the Nineties Goth genres, Fields of the Nephilim, London After Midnight etc. I could write about them but you'll just get bored, 'cause of course you know about them already. But I'll write a little something about how they have influenced this band. Hopefully you'll enjoy that, and have enjoyed part one too!

Goth Subculture has suffered from the mix-up with metal, industrial, emo and the likes, those other equally valuable subcultures that have taken some influences from Gothic aesthetics and elements, but are not the same. Especially in the nineties and later, the confusion with other genres was prevalent. At this time the media did it's part by getting infatuated with the whole phenomenon, which seems to happen every once in a while. Often you would read stuff about Goth people in magazines, or see a news piece made of them on TV etc, but what the genre actually contained was never discussed in depth. Usually they would just tell that these people listened to "heavy and gloomy" music. That, in retrospect, doesn't make much sense, when you consider the roots of the whole subculture. But what could you expect from media who concentrate on the looks, rather than content?

This, I think, is the reason I too had no real knowledge of what Goth actually is. During high school I was more immersed in Metal and in college kept on, adding Saviour Machine and Virgin Black to the list. I even sang a Cure-song (yes, it was Friday I'm in Love) when there was a concert for parents, having no idea about the connection of this band to the looks and people I kept seeing in the media. It wasn't until later, when I had already started my classical singing in conservatoire that I really started searching information about Goth. What prompted me into doing that I cannot say for sure, but it was one of the early symptoms of my transition back to my self, which I will probably dive into later in this blog. But by simply searching online I stumbled across all the early post-punk acts and the bands that came to describe Goth music as we know it.

When I first heard Siouxsie and the Banshees, I knew that this was my stuff, my music. Juju was and perhaps still is, one of my favourite album from them, but it's really hard to choose between that and Tinderbox. The way Siouxsie Sioux used her voice was just, well, striking. Compared to the other similar sounding and mostly later bands like X-mal Deutchland for instance, their music was also just better produced and made as a whole. Well, they did evolve into a "dynamic pop-group", as I've read somewhere, and it wasn't only the proto-goth sounds and her singing that made me fall in love. Equally important and what made a lasting impact on my own musical thinking, was that they were such chameleons and made every album slightly different. And in every one of their album you can find very different songs. It's Siouxsie's voice that unites everything. I've let that fact also console me in the moments I feel like a song I made is too odd.

Sisters of Mercy came later for me. It was the power, the coolness, let's say masculinity or something, that told me, this is Rock. When I first heard the Sisters, I understood where 69 Eyes took it's influence and singing style. The power came from the harmonies, and arrangements, I think. It's the major chords that don't sound happy, but dangerous, powerful, even menacing. The use of acoustic guitars was a wow for me. Dr avalanche might have annoyed me at first, but I soon got used to the groove and as it turns out, drum machine has been part of the Goth aesthetics ever since. Some of the first songs I wrote were made after the fashion of Sisters of Mercy. They have actually grown on me more in recent years and my appreciation has solidified. Their music and style is quite unique, something not many achieve.

The Sisters of course led me to The Mission. They took their use of acoustic guitars a step further and you could hear the roots of the early Sisters too, no explanation needed here. This band actually sounds very Pop-Rock to me, but is still considered as one of the Goth tradition. But yeah, this kind of music was big in the eighties. Later I also found Ghost Dance, which was a spin-off from Skeletal Family, who actually toured with the Sisters. All of these bands, including The Damned and the likes, represent to me the more poppy branch of Goth Rock, and it could be argued, that they are not that Goth, but that would take us into a whole another discussion. Let's not do it here. Now, the one truly Goth/Pop-group, or a band that really transitioned from Goth or Post Punk to Pop, would be The Cure.

I knew some songs beforehand, but I really dove into this band at the same time as Siouxsie came into my life. The one album for me was, and still is, Disintegration. It was such an emotional ride and an inspiration. When I read somewhere Robert Smith created this music during his crisis of turning 30 and feeling he hadn't achieved anything worthwhile, it was a kicker for me. At the same time I was composing my first orchestral work and I had the same crisis going on. 

Another inspiration about Robert Smith and The Cure was their song style, namely, that there are always many instrument layers while the song itself can be quite simple. I tried this technique in our song, Siouxsie on the Beach, and I dare say it will stay in my toolbox, since it's such a useful and effective tool. 

It was of course a huge thing to see this band live in Helsinki 2016, and hear all of those very dear songs performed in front of my eyes by the very people who created them. And Robert Smith's voice still sounded so good! They played almost everything from Disintegration, except the one darkest and saddest song. I also enjoyed their warm up band, Twilight Sad. What was food for thought for me afterwards, is the way Robert and the other band members were still true to their identity, looks and all. It tells me it's something more than just keeping up the appearances of a rock musician. Something to strive for, I'd say.

This brings me to the last band I want to discuss. It's not maybe such a huge influence, like these other pioneers I've mentioned, but it's something that created a connection, and is important for that reason. Our guitarist has always been a huge AC/DC fan and it was one of those identity forming bands for him. When we started to make music together it was hard to find something that would bring us on the same page, which is really important, if you are going to trust the production of your songs to someone

But there was one band that connects eightie's goth vibes and rough rock sounds. The one that started out as The Southern Death Cult and who later changed into The Cult and turned their music into energetic rock. Our guitarist had found this band through AC/DC, I stumbled across them in my searches about "Goth". It's a band that evolved from an identity to another. To us, it's a bridge from one world to another, the page we found our ways to from different parts of the book. 

Now this is already such a mountain for you to read, that I'm afraid you just skipped here. So I will continue in part three. Because there's the Un-Goth confession to make. Until next time then!

Hypnosis