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Deathrock (also spelled '''death rock''') is a term used to identify a Subgenre of Punk Rock and/or Gothic Rock , which incorporated elements of horror and first emerged most prominently in the West Coast Of The United States during the late 1970s and early 1980s . The music and the Scene of "modern" (post-1990) Deathrock bands have a stronger Post-punk influence than the earlier Deathrock bands. Additionally, the term "deathrock" is used as a synonym for first generation Gothic Rock sometimes written as Deathrock/Batcave. ORIGINS OF DEATHROCK Etymology of 'deathrock' The origin of the term 'deathrock' can be traced back to the ' ''Leader Of The Pack'' is arguably the best known example of 1950s style "death rock", but other well known songs from this era would include Mark Dinning's ''Teen Angel'' and Ray Peterson's ''Tell Laura I Love Her'' These early "death rock" songs were generally more serious, introspective and romantic in nature than the novelty songs of this era which humorously dealt with encounters with vampires, monsters, werewolves, etc.[http://www.cod.edu/People/Faculty/pruter/Horror/themes.htm Exactly when the term deathrock re-emerged is unclear; it was being used as early as 1979 to describe the sound of various bands which would later become associated with the deathrock scene. Mark Splatter of deathrock.com attributes it to Rozz Williams although some attribute it to the lyrics from the 1982 Misfits' song All Hell Breaks Loose ("And broken bodies in a death rock dance hall") [http://www.lyricsfreak.com/m/misfits/94159.html , while still others attribute the term to a label applied by the media to describe Los Angeles based Punk bands obsessed with spooky imagery and death, in much the same manner as positive punk was used by the media to describe the early Batcave sound in the U.K. In any event, the term "deathrock" appears to have first caught hold in the West Coast of the United States then spread outward from there. [http://www.author-me.com/nonfiction/whatisgothic.htm] The term deathrock was used interchangeably with when eventually deathrock as a label fell out of vogue and was seldom used except in reference to the Los Angeles bands 45 Grave and Christian Death. Earliest influences on Deathrock While the aforementioned "death rock" songs of the Shangri-Las, Mark Dinning, Ray Peterson, etc. helped to initially establish some of the themes (death, grief, loss, tragedy, etc.) which would become associated with Deathrock, both the sound and visuals of Deathrock were perhaps more influenced by the less serious late 1950s /early 1960s novelty music acts such as Bobby “Boris” Pickett with the '' Monster Mash '' and Screamin' Jay Hawkins with ''I Put a Spell on You'' in the United States, and Screaming Lord Sutch & The Savages with ''Murder in the Graveyard'' in Great Britain. These songs used sound effects [http://www.cod.edu/People/Faculty/pruter/Horror/themes.htm to create a humorously creepy atmosphere while dealing with taboo subjects. Screamin' Jay Hawkins had elaborate an stage act which would include coffins, skulls, shrunken heads, fireworks These novelty songs are still occasionally played at deathrock clubs [http://www.deathrock.com/ghoulschool/setlists07.02.03.html . Other influences from the in Philadelphia and New York, Elvira in Los Angeles (then later nationally), and Ghoulardi {Link without Title} in Cleveland. Well known rock bands from the 1960s and early 1970s such as The Doors , The Velvet Underground , Iggy Pop and The Stooges , Black Sabbath , Alice Cooper , KISS , etc, explored darker themes and sounds, and in some cases by presenting horror themed visuals with their shows which would later influence Deathrock artists. For example, Rozz Williams specifically credits Alice Cooper and KISS as two of his biggest influences {Link without Title} . (For a more complete listing of the early musical influences on Deathrock, see Punk Forerunners and Gothic Rock predecessors .) The emergence of Deathrock in the United States Deathrock first emerged in America in the late 1970s and early 1980s as a horror movie influenced offshoot from the pre-existing Punk Rock , which was at first tied in with the pre- Hardcore L.A. music scene. {Link without Title} . The most active and best documented deathrock music scene was in Los Angeles which centered around the bands The Flesh Eaters (1977), Kommunity FK (1979), 45 Grave (1979), Christian Death (1979), Gun Club (1981), Voodoo Church (1982), Burning Image (1983), etc. However, other cities in the United States also had bands which would later be described as Deathrock such as Theatre Of Ice (1978) in Fallon, Nevada and later Salt Lake City, Utah and Phoenix, Arizona and the Naked & the Dead (1985) in New York {Link without Title} . Most of these deathrock bands were at least partially influenced by the more theatrical glam acts such as David Bowie , Alice Cooper , T. Rex , The New York Dolls , etc, as well as punk progenitors MC5 , The Stooges , Richard Hell & The Voidoids , etc. They were not yet influenced by the more post-punk sounding first generation Gothic Rock bands Bauhaus , Siouxsie And The Banshees , Joy Division , etc, from Europe. These early Deathrock bands took the pre-existing base of punk rock and added dark yet playful images and themes borrowed horror. And in some cases blending hardcore punk with a gothic sound; a prime example of this would be TSOL [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:1jd1vwmva9yk~T1 ; and . During this time, these bands would play at the same venues as punk, hardcore and New Wave bands and were not yet considered part of a separate music scene [http://www.scathe.demon.co.uk/histgoth.htm]. A 1981 review of the Veil, a Los Angeles club catering to a gothic clientele, indicates that "downtown art types" may have also been an indirect influence on the deathrock scene by supporting clubs where Deathrock and gothic rock were played Unlike some of the sub-genres of punk, many Deathrock songs have a strong strong dance beat. The lyrics of the Dead Milkmen 's 1987 satirical song "Instant Club Hit (You'll Dance to Anything)" [http://www.lyricstime.com/dead-milkmen-instant-club-hit-you-ll-dance-to-anything-lyrics.html supports the notion that art school students continued to be some of the more enthusiastic supporters of the Deathrock and gothic rock club scenes through the 1980s. A parallel development in the UK: The Batcave in London Around the same time as deathrock was emerging as a distinctive horror and glam influenced subgenre of punk rock in the United States, another extremely similar horror and glam influenced subgenre of punk and {Link without Title} . Initially, the Batcave was envisioned as a club which would specialize in darker glam and post-punk musical acts However , but this term positive punk quickly gave way to Gothic Rock [http://mutantnation.com/underground/goth.asp . Merger with Gothic Rock In early 1983, the Batcave scene in the UK was had acquired the label "positive punk", but in less than a year it had changed to "goth" and "gothic" In 1983, [http://www.darkwaver.com/subculture/articles/undead.php . The mid {Link without Title} . During the third wave of gothic rock in the mid led some to seek out their earlier Deathrock/Batcave roots {Link without Title} . (For a more complete description of 2nd and 3rd generation Goth, see the Gothic Rock article.) INFLUENTIAL DEATHROCK ARTISTS Rozz Williams Christian Death's 1982 debut album, ''Only Theatre Of Pain'' is widely held by many as the first purely Deathrock album {Link without Title} which could not be easily classified as either a darker flavor of punk (as with T.S.O.L or the Damned), horror punk (as with 45 Grave or Voodoo Church), or post-punk (as with Bauhaus or Joy Division). As a result, Rozz Williams , the lead singer of Christian Death , Shadow Project , Daucus Karota and Premature Ejaculation, to name a few, is considered by many as one of the single most influential musicians in the deathrock scene. Dinah Cancer In the 1980s, Dinah Cancer has been referred to as the Queen of Deathrock the Goddess of Deathrock [http://bap.antidoterecords.net/horrorpunk2.php and the High Priestess of Deathrock for her role as the front woman for 45 Grave during a time when female lead singers were still considered somewhat of a rarity. She eschewed the more "pretty" gothic look for one more horror inspired, and emphasized the more fun side of death [http://www.starvox.net/crypt/dr/germany2.htm as opposed to the more serious and sensual gothic side. Other artists However, this is not to imply that Los Angeles were solely responsible for the formation of the deathrock sound; many bands in the United States released EPs and LPs prior to 1982 which would now be considered deathrock. Also British bands made major contributions to the sound by adding a strong post-punk influence, including Joy Division , Bauhaus , Siouxsie & The Banshees , etc. Other bands from around the world added their own unique contribution to the deathrock sound, including Xmal Deutschland in Germany, The Virgin Prunes from Ireland, and The Birthday Party , etc. Sisters Of Mercy , which is frequently played at Deathrock clubs, is generally not considered a major influence because Sisters of Mercy's sound which has more in common with second wave gothic rock bands (As they were the second wave's prime infuence) than the punkier sound of first wave gothic rock bands {Link without Title} . MODERN DEATHROCK Deathrock revival Nearly 20 years after deathrock appeared on the music scene in Southern California, the deathrock Revival began in Southern California. In 1998 in .) Release the Bats offers songs by classic and modern Deathrock bands for the dance floor, plus a live performance by a Deathrock band. At any time during the night, there are almost as many people outside the club socializing with one another as there are in the club dancing to the music or listening to the band. The continuing success of Release the Bats and the other deathrock clubs which followed have been seen by some as the first sign of deathrock beginning to emerge as a subculture separate from the goth subculture. Modern deathrock music Modern Deathrock bands have a slightly different sound than the classic Deathrock bands. The original horror tinged hardcore punk sound of the genre has been lessened considerably by the influence of the more post-punk and glam sounding Batcave bands. As a result, modern Deathrock relies heavily on scratchy guitars and/or keyboards to create a creepy atmosphere, and experimentation with other instruments to produce unusual sounds is encouraged. Lyrics are typically introspective and angsty; they deal with the dark themes of isolation, irony, disillusionment, loss, death, etc. all of which are designed to strike an emotional chord with the listener. However this places a great demand on the lead vocalist to convey complex emotions, so the lead singers need to be charismatic and have strong, distinctive or unusual voices in order to stand out from the heavily atmospheric and rhythmic music. While the songs have a 4/4 beat to encourage dancing, the heavy emphasis on mood means that Deathrock DJs spin their music to match moods instead of matching beats as do Techno and EBM DJs do [http://www.darkforum.com/archive/index.php/t-32387.html . Abrupt shifts in the mood of the songs caused by inexperienced DJs frequently leads to Deathrockers leaving the dancefloor. Modern deathrock scene The current Deathrock scene is similar to the original deathrock scene in Los Angeles and the Batcave scene in London {Link without Title} . In addition to clubs, the current scene is centered around concerts, special events, parties, and horror movie screenings. The for Deathrockers on Yahoo! and on-line virtual communities on LiveJournal and MySpace . In contrast to the early Deathrock scene, the current scene has four additional influences which didn't exist in the late 1970s or early 1980s. First, there is the influence of post-punk and glam which came from Batcave bands such as Specimen, Sex Gang Children, Alien Sex Fiend, etc. Their influence on modern Deathrock has caused a shift in sound away from early hardcore punk towards a more post-punk sound. Some of the darker sounding songs from modern post-punk revival bands are also occasionally played in Deathrock clubs. Second, there is the influence of Psychobilly (another Music Fusion genre of horror and punk) which is noted for being strongly apolitical. This influence has discouraged political debates which have the potential to fragment the scene. And the Drop Dead Festival , featuring several days of about 60 bands with psychobilly, horror punk and Deathrock bands, is similar to psychobilly's Hootenanny, which emphasizes fun and gives bands with smaller fan bases an opportunity to play before larger crowds {Link without Title} . Third, there is a more serious horror movie influence on Deathrock, based in part on fewer unintentionally campy horror movies being made, plus the increasing availability of horror movie film scores through CDs and legal online music download. Deathrockers also frequently participate on internet discussion forums and mailing lists for horror fans, and many deathrock discussion forums have separate sections specifically for horror movies.) Fourth, and perhaps most importantly, there now exists the influence of older Deathrockers still active in the scene on a new generation of Deathrockers. A significant percentage of modern Deathrockers were part of the deathrock scene in the 1980s and are now in their 30s or 40s. Members of the original Deathrock scene did not have the benefit of a group of 'elders' to pass on the oral history of music and the traditions of the scene. As the modern goth scene continues to drift further away from its horror and punk roots under the influences of more melodic , Bloody Dead And Sexy , The Brides , The Deep Eynde, The Vanishing , Bella Morte and Devilish Presley are popular modern Deathrock bands, while Release the Bats in Long Beach, CA; Funeral in Pomona, CA; the Asylum in San Francisco, CA; Kiss Kiss Bang Bang in Melbourne, Australia; Dead and Buried in London, UK; Pagan Love Songs in Bochum, Germany; Onderstroom in Nijmegen, Netherlands and The Wake in Nottingham, UK remain popular deathrock clubs. DEATHROCK COMPARED TO OTHER SUBGENRES Deathrock synonyms Deathrock probably has more synonyms than any of the other subgenres of punk, and they help illustrate it's similarities and differences to these other punk related subgenres. These synonyms include the 1980s terms death punk, gothic punk, goth punk, horror rock, splatter rock, spooky rock and roll, positive punk, Batcave, PIB (Person in Black), and monochromatic punk; the 1990s terms punky-goth, gothic punk, old school goth, '80s goth and new grave; as well as the 2000s terms dark post-punk and dark dance punk. Horror Punk is sometimes used as a synonym for Deathrock although it is a different subgenre of Punk. Other punk and horror fusion genres The subgenres of punk most closely related to Deathrock are Horror Punk and Psychobilly . While Deathrock is a fusion of pre-hardcore punk, post-punk and horror, horror punk is a fusion of punk and horror, and psychobilly is a fusion of punk, rockabilly and horror. Because of the strong influence of horror on these three subgenres, there exists considerable overlap between their sense of fashion, musical preferences and bands. Generally speaking, horror punk sounds louder, faster and closer to it's over Devilock s {Link without Title} .) Psychobilly, however, is easier to distinguish from horror punk and Deathrock because psychobilly bands normally use an upright bass {Link without Title} whereas horror punk and Deathrock bands do not. Post-punk, especially when dealing with darker themes, sounds very similar to modern deathrock; however post-punk seldom includes horror related themes and images which are important components of Deathrock. Additionally, post-punk bands generally do not put on highly theatrical shows emphasizing spooky imagery. What deathrock is not Despite the similar sounding names deathrock (which is a subgenre of punk) has no connection to the similarly named Death Metal , which is a subgenre of Heavy Metal . Additionally, Deathrock should not be confused with Shock Rock . Deathrockers and Deathrock bands do not deliberately seek to shock others or cause controversy; their fashion choices are generally done in a playful, tongue in cheek manner. However, as it has been previously noted, Deathrock was influenced by earlier shock rockers such as Screamin' Jay Hawkins and Alice Cooper. LISTS OF DEATHROCK BANDS RELATED GENRES
SUBCULTURAL FASHION WEB ZINES
ONLINE COMMUNITIES
INTERNET DEATHROCK RADIO STATIONS ARTICLES
DEATHROCK FESTIVALS
CLUB NIGHTS North America
Europe
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