Greetings and salutations my fellow lovers of all things dark, mysterious, and sublime!

May 22 is World Goth Day, a chance to celebrate the subculture that showed the world how to find beauty in the dark. Evolving out of the U.K. punk scene of the late 1970s, goth music as a genre was born after the release of Bauhaus’ “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” in 1979.

Characterized by a romanticized fascination with darkness—whether it be the dark side of humanity, creatures of the supernatural, or the aesthetic appeal of ages long since past—the term “goth” can refer to anything that contains a mixture of these elements.

Since its inception, goth has grown, evolved, and branched off into new genres and subcultures including darkwave, industrial, steampunk, etc.. For this post, we’re going to highlight the classics you’ll need to consume in order to understand, celebrate, and enjoy the second-most macabre day of the year! (Halloween is the first, of course.)

Music for the Masses: A Place to Start Your Playlist

Siouxsie and the Banshees- Album Juju

Lead singer Siouxsie Sioux has most often been credited as a pioneer in the goth fashion scene. Her heavy eye makeup, huge hair, and penchant for fishnets and leather immediately made her the “It” girl every goth teen would try to emulate for the rest of the 1980s. Their album, Juju, features their breakout hits, “Spellbound” and “Arabian Knights”.  

Joy Division- Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division by Peter Hook

Although the band broke up and reformed as New Order after the death of lead singer Ian Curtis, their two studio albums, Unknown Pleasures and Closer, as well as their hit single “Love Will Tear Us Apart” cemented their place in the burgeoning post-punk era that lead to the creation of the goth scene. Bassist Peter Hook wrote Unknown Pleasures: Inside Joy Division, for fans who would like an insider's history of the iconic band.   

Bauhaus- DVD Shadow of Light Archive

The “Godfathers of Goth”, their hit single “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” is a ten minute long journey of synths, atmosphere, and melodrama that is often credited as the first truly goth record. Their second studio album, Mask, features their hits “Kick in The Eye” and “The Passion of Lovers”. Lead singer Peter Murphy would eventually go solo and release hits like, “Cuts You Up”.

Pictures of You: Graphic Novels

The Crow by James O'Barr

One year after he and his fiance are brutally murdered by a street gang, Eric Draven rises up from the dead as The Crow, a supernatural being who cannot rest until his dead lover is avenged. This graphic novel is full of stunning imagery, brutal action, and poignant storytelling. Author and illustrator James O’Barr’s created this graphic novel as a way to process the death of his own fiance, and the pain of loss and raw emotion comes through on every page. Poetry and lyrics from bands like Joy Division are interspersed throughout the issues, and O’Barr based the look of Eric Draven off of punk band,The Stooges lead singer, Iggy Pop. Because of its dark atmosphere, tale of love and loss, and its heavy poetic influences, this is probably the most goth graphic novel you will ever come across. The film version, starring the late Brandon Lee in the title role, is also one of the few examples of a perfect page to screen adaptation.

Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes by Neil Gaiman

After being captured and held hostage by an occultist for 70 years, the younger brother of Death, Dream, goes on a quest to rebuild his kingdom which has fallen into disrepair in his absence. Set in the DC comics universe, this series begins as a dark horror comic but later evolves into a more elaborate fantasy that effortlessly combines classical and contemporary mythology. Gaiman’s dark illustrations and even darker story feature themes such as human nature, the nature of evil, and what it means to be a hero. Gaiman based the look of the lead character, Dream, off of Bauhaus’ lead singer, Peter Murphy.

Interview With The Vampire: Claudia's Story by Ashley Marie Witter

A graphic novel companion to Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire, this is told from the point of view of Claudia, the immortal child vampire created by the novel's vampire protagonist, Louis, and his companion, Lestat. Outwardly, Claudia maintains the perfect image of a five year old child, while internally she is a grown woman who resents her "fathers" for trapping her in her neveraging body. The tragedy of Claudia's story is beautifully illustrated in black and white with splashes of red whenever there is blood, and there is plenty of blood. 

Through the Woods: Stories by Emily Carroll

Five mysterious, spine-tingling stories follow journeys into (and out of?) the eerie abyss. These chilling tales spring from the macabre imagination of acclaimed and award-winning comic creator, Emily Carroll.

Come take a walk in the woods and see what awaits you there…

Dark Entries: Gothic Horror

For more gothic horror recommendations, check out our posts, A Brief History of Gothic Horror and Where to Start with Edgar Allan Poe.

Castle of Otranto: A Gothic Story by Horace Walpole

One of the first gothic fiction novels ever written, The Castle of Otranto contains much of the elements that would become staples of the genre such as a haunted castle, a cursed family, tense atmosphere, and tragic romance. After Prince Conrad is killed under supernatural circumstances, his father, Manfred, the evil prince of Otranto, conspires to divorce his wife and marry his dead son’s fiancée, the beautiful Princess Isabella. What follows is a harrowing journey of murder, mystery, and shocking revelations.

Frankenstein (1818) by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

The story of Dr. Frankenstein and the obsessive experiment that leads to the creation of a monstrous and deadly creature.

The Fall of the House of Usher: And Other Tales by Edgar Allan Poe ; with an introduction by Stephen Marlowe and a new afterword by Regina Marler
A collection of fourteen of the author's best-known tales of mystery and the macabre includes "The Pit and the Pendulum," "The Tell-Tale Heart," and "The Fall of the House of Usher," in which a visitor to a gloomy mansion finds a childhood friend dying under the spell of a family curse.

Interview with the Vampire by Anne Rice  

Anne Rice both revolutionized and revamped both the vampire novel and the gothic fiction novel with the first entry in her Vampire Chronicles series. Here we have the confessions of Louis, an 18th century vampire who has spent his afterlife struggling with his vampire nature. What follows is an unbelievable journey of horror, madness, and tragedy. Brad Pitt played the title role in the 1994 film adaptation alongside Tom Cruise as the bombastic vampire Lestat.

 

 

 

Kiss me, Kiss me, Kiss me: Gothic Romance

For more Gothic Romance recommendations, check out our post A Brief History of Gothic Romance.  

Mysteries of Udolpho by Ann Radcliffe

Orphan, Emily St. Aubert, finds herself separated from the man she loves and confined within the medieval castle of her aunt's new husband, Montoni. Inside the castle, she must cope with an unwanted suitor, Montoni's threats, and the wild imaginings and terrors that threaten to overwhelm her.* Master and creator of the gothic romance, Radcliffe’s stories combine thrilling horror, suspense, and, of course, romance. Her dark, brooding heroes and strong, determined heroines would become a staple of the gothic fiction genre.

 

 

 

 

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

The orphaned Jane Eyre has emerged a fiercely independent young woman. As governess at Thornfield Hall, she’s found her first real home—though it stands in the shadow of the estate’s master, Mr. Rochester, and its haunted halls ring with maniacal laughter. For even the grandest houses have secrets.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

Recommended by Alexandria Abenshon and Amanda Pagan

The unassuming young heroine of Rebecca finds her life changed overnight when she meets Maxim de Winter, a handsome and wealthy widower whose sudden proposal of marriage takes her by surprise. Rescuing her from an overbearing employer, de Winter whisks her off to Manderley, his isolated estate on the windswept Cornish coast—but there things take a chilling turn.

Max seems haunted by the memory of his glamorous first wife, Rebecca, whose legacy is lovingly tended by the housekeeper, Mrs. Danvers. As the second Mrs. de Winter finds herself increasingly burdened by the shadow of her mysterious predecessor, she becomes determined to uncover the dark secrets that threaten her happiness, no matter the cost.

Bloodflowers: Young Adult Gothic Fiction

For more young adult gothic fiction recommendations, check out our post, Dark and Beautiful: Young Adult Gothic Fiction.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea (Between #1) by April Genevieve Tucholke

You stop fearing the devil when you’re holding his hand… Nothing much exciting rolls through Violet White’s sleepy, seaside town… until River West comes along. River rents the guest house behind Violet’s crumbling estate and as eerie, grim things start to happen, Violet begins to wonder about the boy living in her backyard. Is River just a crooked-smiling liar with pretty eyes and a mysterious past? Or could he be something more?

Violet’s grandmother always warned her about the Devil, but she never said he could be a dark-haired boy who takes naps in the sun, likes coffee, kisses you in a cemetery, and makes you want to kiss back. Violet’s already so knee-deep in love, she can’t see straight. And that’s just how River likes it…

Shadowtime: Films

Nosferatu (1922)

 

The quintessential silent vampire film, crafted by legendary German director F. W. Murnau. Rather than depicting Dracula as a shape-shifting monster or debonair gentleman, Murnau's Graf Orlok is a nightmarish, spidery creature of bulbous head and taloned claws, perhaps the most genuinely disturbing incarnation of vampirism yet envisioned.* The tale of horror and the aesthetic appeal of this silent film classic ensures it will always have a place on any goth movie marathon.

 

 

The Craft (1996)  

If you want to know what goth looked like in the 1990s, watch this movie. The Craft is the story of Sarah, played by Robin Tunney, a teenage girl who moves to a new city and new school and immediately encounters a group of outcasts lead by the power-hungry Nancy, brilliantly played by Fairuza Balk, who invite her to join their coven of witches. Soon the girls’ spells, and their wildest dreams, are all coming true, but you know the saying, be careful what you wish for.

 

 

The Addam’s Family (1991) & Addam's Family: Family Values (1993)

Originally a series of cartoons created by American cartoonist, Charles Addams. The Addams Family became a television series in 1964, and eventually a film series beginning with the release of The Addams Family (1991) and its sequel Addams Family Values (1993). The Addams family consists of devoted husband and wife, Gomez and Morticia, their two precocious children, Wednesday and Pugsley, Uncle Fester, their butler, Lurch, their right-hand thing, Thing, and the various other members of their large and eccentric family. The family lives in a crumbling old mansion and revel in all things dark, mysterious, and macabre. Most of the humor comes from having the characters interact with “normal” people who tend to find them, well, a little kooky.

Crimson Peak (2016)

When her heart is stolen by a seductive stranger, a young woman is swept away to a house atop a mountain of blood-red clay; a place filled with secrets that will haunt her forever. Between desire and darkness, between mystery and madness, lies the truth.

 

 

 

 

For the Gothic Younglings (Because It's Never Too Early to Learn How to Pronounce "Macabre")

For more macabre reading recommendations for your little Goth-in-training, check out our posts, Remembering Charles Addams: Picture Book Edition and Remembering Charles Addams: Elementary & Middle School Edition!

Vampirina Ballerina by Anne Marie Pace  

Oh, to be a ballerina! It's a challenge for any little girl, but even more so if you happen to be a vampire like Vampirina. First of all, you have to find a class that meets at night. Then you have to figure out how to perfect your form when you can't see yourself in the mirror? And then there's wearing pink (not the most flattering of colors if you happen to be undead) and that nagging urge to take a little nip out of the other dancers. And worse of all STAGE FRIGHT!!!*

 

 

A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket

 

After the sudden death of their parents, the three Baudelaire children must depend on each other and their wits when it turns out that the distant relative who is appointed their guardian is determined to use any means necessary to get their fortune.*

 

 

 

Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

Bod is an unusual boy who inhabits an unusual place—he's the only living resident of a graveyard. Raised from infancy by the ghosts, werewolves, and other cemetery denizens, Bod has learned the antiquated customs of his guardians' time as well as their ghostly teachings—such as the ability to Fade so mere mortals cannot see him.

Can a boy raised by ghosts face the wonders and terrors of the worlds of both the living and the dead?*

 

 

 

*adapted from the publisher