The Dark Reign of Gothic Rock: In The Reptile House with The Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus and The Cure (Helter Skelter) (Paperback)

~ Dave Thompson (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

From Joy Division to Nine Inch Nails and from Siouxsie and the Banshees to Marilyn Manson, gothic rock has endured as the cult of choice for the disaffected and the alienated. The author traces the rise of ’80s and ’90s goth from influences such as Hammer House of Horror movies and schlock novels, through its post-punk origins into the full-blown drama of Bauhaus, The Cure and the hugely popular Sisters of Mercy axis of bands.

From the Publisher

Finally a book that documents the long and twisted story of the dark strain of goth that culminated in the stupendously great Sisters et al.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Helter Skelter Publishing (November 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 190092448X
• ISBN-13: 978-1900924481
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,604,521 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent rock book, January 15, 2004

By	N. P. Stathoulopoulos "nick9155" (Brooklyn, NY) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This is one of the very few books to deal specifically with the actual sub genre of rock known as gothic rock. Like punk, goth has become a blanket term used to describe any band that remotely approaches a certain aesthetic that was once (sort of) original.

Thompson's book sets the record straighter by focusing mainly on the UK and the post punk scene that was the birthing ground for what would become 'gothic' rock. The author covers the separate 'scenes' that grew up in various parts of the country (London, Leeds, etc) and how they differed and developed. When the initial thrill of punk receded, post punk rose up and developed along different lines, spinning off and inspiring genres like goth and even new wave. Much attention is given to The Cure, Southern Death Cult, The Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus, Siouxsie, etc. A lot of ground is covered, from Joy Division (described as having a 'gothic' sound) through the wranglings between Andrew Eldritch's Sisterhood and the ex members of the Sisters, toward the Fields of the Nephilim, who tried to fill the gap left by the Sisters. Toward the end, the American scene is covered a bit, focusing on 'Death' rock with bands like Christian Death and .45 Grave, for instance.

The book is well researched, well written and not particularly biased. Thomson's style is smooth and well organized. The chapters deal with specific months and years and move around from the status of one band to another. The author also touches on more recents developments since the 1980s, addressing the various artists and bands that have been characterized as 'goth'. But again, the main focus is on progenitors of the genre rather than latter day pretenders to the throne.

There are also some decent pictures, but overall this is an excellent rock book, full of information for even casual fans of the genre or of the particular bands mentioned above. Well indexed, too. Highly recommended!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A magnificent book, September 10, 2003

By	mick mercer (Selsey, UK) - See all my reviews

This book will be a Godsend for anyone wishing to research the development of Goth, remind themselves of great times, or just to discover new bands, all in a sensible linear way.

The book is weighty, and text-heavy, with only a small selection of photos dotted throughout. It is aimed at those who want to devour the information, which I would imagine means anyone sensible who is, or has ever been, into Goth. He begins with a strange examination of the early days, giving special emphasis to Iggy's 'The Idiot and further clouding the pre-punk era by suggesting King Crimson gets a look in, as do the bleak visions of Doctors Of Madness, or the cartoonish drama-punk outfit, Rikki & The Last Days Of Earth. This early section covers from Punk to the early 80's, and Dave is knowledgeable enough not to regard Joy Div, Banshees, Damned, or Cure as Goth bands themselves, but artists who influenced some, and shared Gothic elements with others. He includes Ultravox and Magazine and the names of the main interesting bands of the era flicker past your eyes, but he concentrates on establishing a loose thread that connects the activities of The Banshees (who he eventually loses track of), Joy Division (but not New Order), The Cure, Bauhaus and Birthday Party.

Smaller bands get slotted neatly into the historical flow, which helps to make this book so useful to so many, as we get the UK Decay, Killing Joke and Virgin Prunes, before blending the Birthday Party, Ants and Bauhaus eras, leading up to Futurama, and in the post-Blitz serenity showing how The Cure, Bauhaus, Birthday Party, Sisters, Theatre Of Hate and Bauhaus reputations became established. Section 2 starts neatly be accepting the Gothic term and tag was firmly in place, introducing Southern Death Cult and Gene Loves Jezebel, as well as dragging Nico in for some praise. Then it's the Batcave, with Specimen, Almond Sex Gang, Sex Fiend (largely ignored) and the Sisters.

From that point in, other than Flesh For Lulu, he sticks with the big names. Part 3 brings in the Nephilim, trawls thorough the whole Sisters/Sisterhood/Mission period, and trots grandly on, until signing off with the reunions of the 90's and a frankly disappointing epilogue, and trivial recognition that America had/has some bands too! I would have expected much more about the development of the American scene, which he must know is much more widespread and artistically adventurous than our own (having done an Industrial book through Cleopatra). No matter, because he has pulled together the main period he obviously wanted to cover and does so superbly, creating a highly detailed, easy read full of incident, and the biggest slap on the back for Dave, who never once knowingly reveals any love for this music whatsoever, is how he affords Goth real respect.

"Maybe Gothic Rock did get a little silly, a little cliched, and awfully distorted somewhere down the line. But what do you think happened to Glam, Punk and Rock 'n' Roll itself? They hardly remained pure and pristine, either. But they survived, not simply to continue resonating within the world of modern rock, but to form the physical building blocks of everything that passes for rock music today. Gothic Rock is as vital a part of that construct as any of those others."

I fail to see how anybody could want to ignore this?

(Oh, and he ignores the NME's `Positive Punk' article because he probably knows the journalist never meant the piece to be taken that way, but the sub-editors concocted that themselves.)

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Real good history of Gothic Rock., February 21, 2003

By	satan (earth) - See all my reviews

I've read just about every book out there dealing with the Goth scene and just about every one of them covers everything that could possibly fit under that name and then some. This one sticks to just the music and in many ways is much better that all the others. After all isn't it the music that's the primary reason we love Goth after all? Mick Mercer is the only person that's has gotten it right until this book by Dave Thompson.

It was like reading about everything that I experienced growing up and discovering it all over again.

These days what most kids call Goth has absolutely and utterly nothing whatsoever to do with anything Goth was the 1st 20 years it was around. How many times must I read about Korn being a Goth band? I mean give me a break! Whining, depressed, wanna-be-vampire teen suburban idiots dressed up in all black listening to Marilyn Manson and Korn calling themselves Goth has utterly destroyed the scene forever. I will have nothing to do with any of these dumb kids. I never in my entire 20+ year Goth `career' ever met a whining depressed Goth ever, until 5 years ago. They should all be forced to read this book and listen to every album that's referred to in it.

Goth is a scene that must look to its history for its present or future to have any meaning or hope. If you consider yourself a Goth I highly recommend you read this book. You'll love it. If you don't love it, go back to hanging out at the mall, because I can't imagine you really are a Goth in the 1st place.