LUNCH, LYDIA American singer, writer, poet, actress, photographer and all-around agent provocateur (née Lydia Koch, b. June 2, 1959) best known to punk music historians as part of New York City’s No Wave scene with her band Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, or to art students and perverts as star of Richard Kern’s explicit films like Fingered, or to women’s studies types as author of the unflinching confessional Paradoxia or to fans of NICK CAVE and the BIRTHDAY PARTY as regular co-conspirator. But for Goths, more than for her diverse credits, she is best known for simply being Lydia: confrontational, disturbed and disturbing; a walking, sneering, screeching manifesto for DIY art and sexual liberation (including the really dark, violent sort) who made a career out of being fucked up, fucking and fucking shit up, and looking bad-ass in leather and red lips doing it. Too seedy for some but an important role model for many.
LYCIA American DARKWAVE band formed in Tempe, Arizona, in 1988 by vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Mike VanPortfleet, now a duo featuring vocalist Tara VanFlower. Architects of the American ETHEREAL sound: minimalist, melancholy, drenched in dizzying guitar effects and menaced by lurching drum machine rhythms, as epitomized on the 1993 release A Day in the Stark Corner, which TYPE O NEGATIVE’s PETER STEELE once called “the most depressing thing” he’d ever heard. Latest release is 2010’s slightly sunnier EP Fifth Sun. Best moment may have been spoof of AMERICAN GOTHIC painting for publicity photos.
MALL GOTH A Goth teenager who hangs out in malls, usually those containing a HOT TOPIC store or derivations thereof. A derogatory term for young people who make a big deal of dressing up Goth but don’t know much (if anything) about the music or subculture and thus come off as POSEURs. Used more by non-Goths with a grudge than Goths themselves.
MANA Japanese rock star and fashion designer of shadowy origins. As leader of the bands Malice Mizer (1992–2001) and Moi dix Mois (2002–present) he has dressed in ANDROGYNOUS clothing and make-up, refused to give interviews, and engaged in dramatic live performances that mix classical baroque, heavy metal and Goth sounds with historical, often VICTORIAN-style costuming. In 1999, formed the clothing company Moi-même-Moitié, establishing the Elegant GOTHIC LOLITA style and further cementing his status as an icon for Goth Lolis in Japan and the West. If he ever decides to switch to acting, would make a great Vampire LESTAT.
MANIC PANIC Gothdom’s most famous hair dye. Created by sisters Tish and Snooky Bellomo, who started importing cosmetics and hair colour into their punk clothing store in New York’s East Village in 1977. Later, concocted their own brand of semi-permanent hair dye in outrageous colours: Purple Haze, VAMPIRE Red, Green Envy, etc. These plastic jars of goo have been slathered on the heads of FREAKs ever since. (CYBERGOTHs and other clubbers love their glow-in-the-dark neon DyeHard hair gels.) Also a cosmetics line, which includes such handy items as Goth White face make-up.
MANSONITE MARILYN MANSON fan, as referred to by non-Manson fans. Derogatory. Compare: Spooky kids
MANSON, MARILYN American singer (né Brian Warner, b. January 5, 1969) and leader of the band of the same name he founded in 1989, who took his stage moniker from mashing up Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson then proceeded to spend ten years pissing off parents and religious authorities all across America. You know this of course — Manson is a bona fide household-name rock star. But can he also be Goth? Of course he can. He is. He dresses it: ghastly, ANDROGYNOUS make-up; LATEX and CORSETs on stage; couture mourning CLOAKS on the red carpet. He lives it: exploring the occult, embracing perversion and decadence, collecting skulls and bones, hanging out with FREAKs. He draws weird shit. He produced a brand of ABSINTHE (“Mansinthe”). He married DITA VON TEESE, the Gothiest of pin-up girls. And he likes nothing more than to take the dark stuff most people bury and shove it right in the face of the public until they squirm. It’s gotten him arrested, banned and scapegoated and still he pushed the boundaries and stood up for misfits everywhere. So why is “Is Marilyn Manson Goth?” such a hot topic? Because his band plays rock ’n’ roll, not GOTHIC ROCK, and has had major mainstream success doing it. And some Goths think when the kid at the mall and the football jock who doesn’t know what Goth is start wearing all black and painting themselves up like Manson it’s somehow a blight on our society. Those haters might want to go watch the videos for songs like “Nobodies,” “The Beautiful People” and “mOBSCENE” and think about how Manson has made some of the most gloriously Gothic pop art ever.
MARCH VIOLETS, THE British GOTHIC ROCK band, formed in LEEDS in 1981 by Tom Ashton (guitar), Loz Elliot (bass), Simon Denbigh (vocals) and Rosie Garland (vocals). Goth from the get-go: debut 7” single “Religious as Hell” was issued on THE SISTERS’ label MERCIFUL RELEASE, all stern drum machine and dual ghastly vocals. Sadly, grew less and less Goth, unless you count sounding like a second-rate MISSION for a while. Key tracks: 1984’s semi-hit “Snake Dance” and a rather limp cover of the Rolling Stones’ “Miss Amanda Jones” for 1987’s Some Kind of Wonderful soundtrack.
MARSDEN, SIMON British photographer (b. December 1, 1948) specializing in the supernatural. His black-and-white photography of cemeteries, churches, haunted houses and the like features in museums and galleries worldwide, and in book form on the shelf of many a Goth.
MARY JANE Shoe style for girls, distinguished by a rounded toe and one ankle strap, traditionally flat or with a low heel as worn by youth but also produced with heels or platforms. Popular with GOTHIC LOLITAs and GOTHABILLY ladies seeking the schoolgirl or retro look, respectively. Often worn with knee-high socks or striped tights.
MASKS Masquerade style masks are popular for HALLOWEEN, of course, but for the rest of the year there are surgical masks and gasmasks, available in all kinds of gothy material like PVC, for those who fetishize biohazards and other medical disasters. Like GOGGLES, introduced by the CYBERGOTHs, probably under the influence of anime/manga, and customized to sexy, sinister extremes. Laugh now, but if SARS comes back, you’ll wish you had one.
MASOCHISTIC RELIGION Canadian capital-G Goth group formed and led by singer/guitarist Mitch Krol in Toronto in the late 1980s. A diabolical sonic concoction of blasphemy, poetry, s/m and nihilism over minimalist beats and grinding guitars, mr was often compared to CHRISTIAN DEATH but had a much better sense of humour about it all. Their first record was called … And From This Broken Cross … Our Misery; 1997 album The Litanies of Satan was based on the writings of CHARLES BAUDELAIRE; their performance at CONVERGENCE in Toronto saw Krol emerge from a COFFIN and set a Bible on fire. Most shocking: the guy moved to Montreal, bleached his hair blond and started a country music project.
MATRIX, THE Trilogy of science fiction films beginning with The Matrix in 1999, directed by brothers Andy and Larry Wachowski and starring Keanu Reeves as Neo, a computer programmer/hacker who discovers he is “The One,” with superhuman powers that can end a war between humans and machines. A mainstream blockbuster success with some truly disturbing dystopian themes, this hybrid of Blade Runner, NEUROMANCER, anime and action certainly looked Goth: blue and grey tones, black PVC costumes and a bar (Club Hel in The Matrix Revolutions) based on a typical fetish club. If every Goth geek wasn’t already wearing dark shades and a trenchcoat beforehand, they certainly were afterwards. See also: Morpheus, Trinity
MCGOWAN, ROSE American actress (b. September 5, 1973) and object of envy: not for being engaged to MARILYN MANSON for a time, but for the kind of high-end, haute Goth couture she got to wear to attend fancy events on his arm. Acclaimed on her own merits, of course: co-star of the TV series Charmed, in which she played a telekinetic witch; co-star of The Doom Generation, in which she played a red-lipped, black-haired, bad-ass punk rock girl on the run; star of Grindhouse, in which she played both a amputee stripper named Cherry and a car crash victim. A dream date for Goth Boys (and some Goth Girls too).
MEDIEVAL There wouldn’t be Goth without the Middle Ages. Or at least, there wouldn’t be Gothic. That period in Europe, from fifth to fifteenth centuries, where Gothic art and architecture was bo
rn. Oh, the flying buttresses and arched vaults! The castles and cathedrals! The stained glass and courtly love poems! The knights and the maidens! Many are the Goths drawn to this time in history — the ones who wear long VELVET dresses or carry swords to the REN FAIR, or furnish their homes with replicas of the Notre Dame GARGOYLEs, while listening to GREGORIAN CHANT CDs. They might even romanticize the Black Death. Then you remind them of the feudal system, and the Inquisition, and how if born in Medieval times they’d probably be starving and burned at the stake rather than clad in finery, leisurely reading, and they have to admit it wasn’t the best of times. But it sure was Gothic.
MEDIÆVAL BÆBES British classical singing group headed by Katharine Blake, ex–MIRANDA SEX GARDEN. Begun as a gang of girlfriends singing traditional songs from the Middle Ages in a cemetery in “flowing white gowns and crowns of ivy”; became a chart-topping, global sensation after release of their 1997 debut Salva Nos. As sassy as they were sexy, the revolving cast of six to twelve Babes brought a dark mystical sensibility to their songs and poetry, sung in Latin, Gaelic and other languages of yore. Contributed not only to the general public’s hunger for new classical artists (well, at least the pretty ones) but also to Goth’s renewed interest in all things MEDIEVAL. One doesn’t need to like Christmas to pull out their album Mistletoe and Wine, one just needs to be TRAD GOTH or ROMANTIGOTH.
MELTDOWN British magazine published quarterly from 2000 to 2004, founded and edited by Natasha Scharf. Taking a high-quality glossy approach, it aimed to present dark alternative music, fashion and culture in a serious, professional light, and earned a place on major newsstands as a result, becoming the bestselling mag of its kind. Coverage varied from SIOUXSIE and Peter to J. Rock/Lolita to GOTHIC METAL. Since folding the print mag, and its spinoff TV show, Scharf has continued to bring Goth to the masses contributing to radio, TV and magazines such as Metal Hammer, as well as her 2011 book, Worldwide Gothic.
MEMENTO MORI Latin phrase meaning “remember you must die,” and the art or artifacts to remind one of it. From skeletons on funereal tombs to skull jewelry and the like, the history of surrounding oneself with depictions of Death goes back in time well before modern heavy metal and Goths adopted it. Which is something you can drop when your parents tell you you’re wearing one too many skulls. Or ten.
M’ERA LUNA Music festival held annually in a field outside Heldesheim, GERMANY, since 2000, featuring live performances, DJs and camping. Attracting more than 20,000 people by mixing classic DEATH ROCK and EBM bands with metal and “dark” artists. Issues “yellow cards” for bad behaviour, including crowd surfing.
MERCER, MICK British journalist, photographer and Goth music historian, author of several very important tomes: Gothic Rock, Hex Files, 21st Century Goth and Music to Die For, all authoritative, comprehensive reference tools one should own, even if some information is now out of date. Probably the world’s leading expert on this genre, who got his start in the trenches doing a punk fanzine, Panache, in 1976 and continues to cover new music for his blog while self-publishing books of rare photographs from his vaults. Full of enthusiasm but not blinded by it, you can always count on Mercer to tell it like it is: even if he believes THE CURE is not Goth, which is, of course, pure poppycock.
MERCIFUL RELEASE British independent record label formed by ANDREW ELDRITCH to release material from THE SISTERS OF MERCY, debuting with the 7” vinyl single for “The Damage Done” in 1980. Other bands on the label are generally Sisters-related: The Sisterhood, James Ray, MK Ultra, etc. Unless the band ever does put out that long overdue new recording, seems to be defunct.
MESH The holiest of Goth fabrics, used to make gloves and GAUNTLETS and also tight-fitting Tshirts for boys and the kind of girls who show off their bras, or more. DIY way to a mesh shirt is to take a pair of FISHNETS, rip the crotch out, cut off the feet and wear them upside down over your head. Not to be confused with sports uniform jersey mesh, and remember the golden rule (especially you drummers out there): mesh shirt or fingerless gloves, never both.
METROPOLIS RECORDS American record label and distributor based in Philadelphia, leading supplier of post-INDUSTRIAL electronic and Goth music. Started as a record shop called Digital Underground by Dave Heckman in 1995 importing European releases, then began licensing them for the North American market. By the time they started signing their own bands, Metropolis was so successful at understanding this market that big-name acts such as Front Line Assembly, KMFDM and Meat Beat Manifesto came calling to them. Probably directly responsible for the infiltration of third generation European EBM acts like VNV NATION and Covenant into North American clubs, as well as the dozens of copycat bands in their wake. (An “industrial 101” webpage once listed “Signing to Metropolis” as part of the top 10 things to do to become an industrial music star.) Continues to pump out new dark SYNTHPOP and other genres, notably THE BIRTHDAY MASSACRE and COMBICHRIST.
MIRANDA SEX GARDEN British girl band formed in 1990 as a madrigal singing group by Katharine Blake. Yes, they ultimately had boy members, and an ever-evolving sound from pure a capella to rock/classical/INDUSTRIAL hybrids involving violins and distorted guitars. But it was Blake and her female vocalists that made MSG the go-to gang for ROMANTIGOTHs seeking more edge than Enigma. Defunct. Essential tracks: “Play,” “Peep Show” and “A Fairytale About Slavery.” See also: Mediæval Bæbes
MISFITS, THE American HORROR PUNK band, formed in 1977 in New Jersey by singer/guitarist GLENN DANZIG and bassist Jerry Only. Not the first rock ’n’ rollers to write songs about comic book and B-movie creatures, but their combination of hardcore and horror captured the imagination of a generation of monster kids. Remains a seminal act for fans of DEATH ROCK and GOTHABILLY, with a ubiquitous skull logo. See also: Crimson Ghost; Devilock
MISSION, THE British GOTHIC ROCK band (also called The Mission U.K. in North America) formed in 1986 by WAYNE HUSSEY and Craig Adams after they left THE SISTERS OF MERCY, not without acrimony. Enjoyed significant chart success with ’86 debut God’s Own Medicine and delivered steady stream of bombastic, arena-sized rock well into the 1990s. In hindsight, they were never actually all that good, and few in the next generation have bothered with them. Still, for a time, one of the biggest bands in all of Gothdom. No idea why they named 2010’s album Dum Dum Bullet (lifted from the lyrics to Sisters’ hit “Lucretia”) unless Wayne and ANDREW ELDRICH have an in-joke going that eludes the rest of us. Key songs include “Wasteland,” “Severina,” “Tower of Strength” and covers of “Dancing Barefoot” and “Like a Hurricane.”
MODERN PRIMITIVES Practitioners of BODY MODIFICATIONS such as TATTOOING, piercing and scarification, specifically urban Westerners interested in the spiritual or more traditional rite of passage elements. Popularized by the 1989 book of the same name by RE/SEARCH PUBLICATIONS, which exposed some fairly radical mods such as genital piercings, extreme CORSETRY and flesh hook suspension to a wider audience. By the time Lollapalooza brought the Jim Rose Circus Sideshow all across North America in 1992, some of these things were well on their way from the underground to the mall. Now that they are out of fashion, Goths can go back to feeling rebellious and transgressive for having their nipples pierced.
MODERN VAMPIRE A person who believes that VAMPIRES exist, and they are one of them. Communities of sanguinarians (those who drink blood) and psychic vampires (those who drain lifeforce/energy instead) pretty much play amongst themselves, either in actual churches/cults or in online groups. A complicated topic. I’d say most if not all are delusional, but since they have very little to do with Goth other than public stereotype, I can get away with avoiding further detailed discussions on the matter and instead direct you to the books American Vampires: Fans, Victims, Practitioners by Norine Dresser and Vampire Nation by Arlene Russo.
MOONBOOTS Generic term for a huge honking boot: usually with a raised, though flat, platform sole and many buckles. Not to be confused with the actual trademarked “Moon Boot” which is a shapeless ski boot type of thing.
See: Demonia, Transmuter
MOPEY GOTH The most stereotypical Goth of all, one who wallows in melancholy, exhibits anti-social behaviour and would rather be left alone in the darkest corner of the café clutching a BAUDELAIRE or writing tortured poetry to the point where even other Goths will tell them they should cheer up. There are fewer of these than you might think.
MORBID CURIOSITY American magazine publishing first-person essays on unusual activities, edited by Loren Rhoads, from 1997 to 2006. Often macabre and grotesque (necrophilia!), developed a cult following. Most Goth? The mag held its own wake. The anthology Morbid Curiosity Cures the Blues was published in 2009.
MORBID OUTLOOK Goth culture webzine published by writer/DJ Mistress Laura McCutchan, begun as an old-school cut-and-paste zine out of New York City in 1992, now based in Toronto. One of the earliest to jump online, where it continues to publish original fiction and poetry alongside reviews, interviews and features about music, art, fashion and a healthy Goth lifestyle, including veganism and spirituality.
MORPHEUS 1. Alias for the character Dream in NEIL GAIMAN’s comic book series The Sandman, named for the Greek god of dreams and drawn as a tall thin man with stars in the black holes where his eyes should be. Not as important to Goths as Sandman’s DEATH character (obviously) but still inspiration for many an online pseudonym. 2. Fictional character in THE MATRIX trilogy of films (played by Laurence Fishburne), a terrorist, a ship’s captain, a pill pusher, a sporter of trenchcoats.
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