Encyclopedia Gothica (19 page)

POSEUR
A pejorative term for a person considered a fake by members of a subculture, from the French verb “to pose.” Popularized by punks to describe someone who dresses the part but doesn’t listen to the music or understand the culture and used by metal and hip-hop cultures as well. Goths take it even more seriously, devising a variety of words to distinguish and demean different kinds of poseurs.
See also:
Doom Cookie
,
Kindergoth
,
Mall Goth
,
NINNY
,
Mansonite

POSITIVE PUNK
Between punk and
POST-PUNK
and well before Goth, there was this short-lived term to describe the new black-clad clan. Hard to imagine this dark scene was ever considered positive, but I suppose in contrast to people who used to spit at each other and wear safety pins in their faces for jewelry, it seemed so.

POST-PUNK
Musical subgenre that emerged from the British punk rock scene and gave birth to
GOTHIC ROCK
. Originally coined to describe
SIOUXSIE AND THE BANSHEES
in
Sounds
magazine in 1977, was soon widely applied to various ’80s groups taking punk in a darker, more experimental direction, including
BAUHAUS
,
JOY DIVISION
,
THE CURE
, The Fall, Gang of Four and others. With its emphasis on deep bass, stark, slowed-down rhythms, synthesizers and morbid lyrics — with a very stylish eye towards dress and theatrical live shows — it expressed a different side of musical rebellion, one that resonated across the pond to the
NO WAVERS
in New York and the
DEATH ROCKERS
in California. Outgrew itself and split into
NEW WAVE
, Gothic rock and alternative, with a revival in the 2000s thanks to bands like
INTERPOL
and others who would never admit to being Goth but will gladly call themselves post-punk.

PRICE, VINCENT
American actor (né Vincent Leonard Price Jr., 1911–1993), icon of horror, he of the distinctively low voice and devilish eyebrows and smile. While many children of the 1980s first discovered him from his spoken word on Michael Jackson’s hit song “Thriller,” Price had been the leading man in scary film and TV since the 1940s, most notably a string of low-budget adaptations of
EDGAR ALLAN POE
tales in the 1960s including
House of Usher
and
The Masque of the Red Death
. In the 1970s, he appeared on
ALICE COOPER
’s album
Welcome to My Nightmare
, as well as in
The Muppet Show
and Canada’s
Hilarious House of Frightenstein
. Price was never famed for one particular role or even style. He could do TV game show humour as well as horror, but he excelled in Gothic and noir pictures, and there was always something delectably macabre about him. A food enthusiast, renowned art collector, fine writer and all around bon vivant, Price is combination Patron Saint and fantasy dad. His final role was in 1990’s
EDWARD SCISSORHANDS
, directed by
TIM BURTON
, a fitting hand-off to the next generation’s master of the dark arts. His ashes were scattered at sea.

PROJECT PITCHFORK
German
SYNTHPOP
band formed by Peter Spilles (vocals) and Dirk Scheuber (keyboards) in 1989. Have been adopted by the North American Goth/
INDUSTRIAL
community, despite the fact they’re really neither. Rather, they’ve brought a new wave of stompy, melodic European-style
EBM
(sung in English) to these shores that has crossed over into every dark-electro scene. Key tracks: “Souls,” “Timekiller.”

PROJEKT RECORDS
American independent label founded by musician Sam Rosenthal in 1983. Early ads for a free mail-order catalogue summed up its specialty: “
ETHEREAL
, Gothic,
AMBIENT
.” A counterpoint to the California
DEATH ROCK
scene, Projekt was the home of what came to be known in the later 1990s as “
DARKWAVE
” (some credit Rosenthal with coining the term), with swirly, more
SHOEGAZERY
releases by
LYCIA
, Love Spirals Downwards, Attrition and
BLACK TAPE FOR A BLUE GIRL
, his own band. Still active, producing the semi-regular Projektfest music festival and releasing a healthy schedule of enchanting new music.

PROPAGANDA
American magazine, edited by Fred Berger in the late 1980s and early ’90s. The first North American publication devoted to Goth, and in the pre-internet age the most important source of information and inspiration for those in small towns who managed to stumble upon it through mail order (e.g., me!). Initially black and white, heavy on fashion spreads, band interviews and scene reports from L.A., it celebrated all things Goth with an erotic eye. Ultimately evolved into a colour mag focused on pictorials of
ANDROGYNOUS
babes, but not before Berger produced some black-and-white porny Goth videos. Back issues are scarce but well worth collecting.

PSEUDONYM
As was so well spoofed by
SNL
’s
AZRAEL ABYSS
, many Goths like to have names that reflect their true, dark nature. And if you’re not fortunate enough to have been named Moon or Raven by your parents, you’ll need to come up with your own. This exploded in the internet and role playing–game age, where you’ll find no end to the ArcAngels, Baron Von SuchandSuches, Vlad Draculs, Mistress Nightmares and so on. Hey, don’t laugh too hard, it was good enough for
ANDREW ELDRITCH
.

PSYCHIC VAMPIRE
See:
Modern vampire

PSYCHOBILLY
See:
Gothabilly

PUFFY SHIRT
What Jerry Seinfeld calls a
POET SHIRT
. Nobody else does.

PULLING THE TAFFY
Sarcastic term for dancing with one’s arms reaching up to the rafters and back again in a dramatic fashion. Also known as “Clearing the cobwebs from the attic.”

PVC
Short for polyvinyl chloride, a plastic material used in fetish wear and other clothing. A little bit spandex, a little bit patent leather, this inexpensive, man-made alternative to animal skins is popular with cheapskates and vegans and anyone looking for that shiny Catwoman/Batman/
MATRIX
look. The British mods used it for go-go boots and rainslicks in the 1960s, but Goths have helped make a market for
PVC
everything: pants, skirts, dresses,
CORSET
s, lingerie, handbags, even T-shirts. Yeah, it might not be the best idea to rub your skin against the same kind of potentially harmful chemicals used to make vinyl siding, but if you’re gonna die, might as well die with your shiniest
PVC
boots on.

QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
Horror film directed by Michael Rymer in 2002, based on the epic third novel in
ANNE RICE
’s
VAMPIRE
Chronicles. Starring Stuart Townsend as the rock star version of Vampire
LESTAT
, who wakes Akasha, the sexy and sinister “first” vampire, played by R&B singer Aaliyah. A goofier, more adolescent cinematic adaptation of Rice’s world than
INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE
, with Lestat dressed a bit too much like
ERIC DRAVEN
as
THE CROW
and a now-dated soundtrack of nü metal, nevertheless it gave a lot of Australian Goth teens roles as extras in the big concert scene. Dedicated to the memory of Aaliyah, who died in 2001 in a plane crash shortly after completing shooting.

RAKS GOTHIQUE
See:
Gothic belly dance

RAMPLING, ANNE
Nom de plume for author
ANNE
“Vampire Chronicles”
RICE
, under which she wrote the sexually provocative novels
Exit to Eden
(1985) and
Belinda
(1986), which explored
BDSM
and man-girl love, respectively.
See also:
Roquelaure, A.N.

RASPUTINA
American cello trio founded by Melora Creager in 1989 as the Travelling Ladies’ Cello Society.
STEAMPUNK
before most Goths even knew what that was, the group combines
VICTORIANA
with rock ’n’ roll, wrapped tightly in
CORSET
s and a wicked sense of play. The major labels came calling early, and Rasputina enjoyed widespread mainstream promotion in the early ’90s, via
MARILYN MANSON
remixes and placement on
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER
. Today, an independent outfit keeping esoteric folk tales alive through DIY recordings and small-scale recitals. Essential tracks: “Transylvanian Concubine,” “1816, The Year Without a Summer.”

RAVENCROW NEVERSMILES
Pseudonym chosen by fictional character Lisa Simpson in the 2004
Simpsons
episode “Smart and Smarter” when, during an identity crisis, she adopts a Goth persona (after rejecting cheerleader and rapper). Her yellow hair turns black, and she’s rocking the
FISHNETS
. When her nerdy suitor Millhouse mistakes her black-and-purple attire for an Oakland Raiders fan thing, she dismisses him with “It’s called Goth, eternally clueless one.”

RAVEN, THE
Once upon a midnight dreary, real or imagined,
EDGAR ALLAN POE
wrote this narrative poem about a lovesick young man who goes mad in the presence of a talking raven gently rapping on his chamber door. It was widely published in 1845 and made him famous (if not rich, sadly). In the years since, this well-known verse has become a Goth hymn — memorized, romanticized — and cultural touchstone representing gloominess satirized by everyone from black metal bands to TV comedy writers. An outrageously perfect reading of it by actor Christopher Walken appears on the Poe tribute CD
Closed on Account of Rabies
. When will its impact wane? Obvious: Nevermore.

REACH FOR THE CRYPT
One-off Goth game show produced and hosted in 2001 by broadcaster/author/not-so-closet Goth Daniel Richler for Canada’s Book Television, in which he quizzed a team (myself included) on
DRACULA
facts vs. rumour to promote the book
Dracula: Sense and Nonsense
by scholar Elizabeth Miller.

REC.MUSIC.INDUSTRIAL
Usenet group formed in 1991 for the discussion of all
INDUSTRIAL
-related music. For years, an indispensable source of info on new releases and concerts, now mostly a cobweb of its former self. If you have a burning question about the minutiae of Front 242’s discography, its old FAQs should be of some assistance.

RECOVERING GOTH
An ex-Goth, someone who considers his/her Gothdom to be in the past. Perhaps they don’t dress up as much as they used to, or go clubbing anymore. But the fact that they still know enough about the scene to refer to themselves as this in-joke means they are probably still quite Goth on the inside.

REDEMPTION FILMS
See:
Salvation Group

REGULATION COLOURS
Acceptable colours for clothing, make-up and home décor. Essentially: black and red. You can also get away with dark purple, burgundy and some shades of green or blue.
See also:
Silver

RELEASE THE BATS
1. Song by
THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
, released 1981. Two-and-a-half minutes of noisy, skronking shrieks! 2. Monthly
DEATH ROCK
club night held in Long Beach, California, since 1998, featuring live bands and DJs including the event’s appropriately named promoter and resident selector Dave Bats. Holding it down for the
TRAD GOTH
s in the face of Cyber domination for those who like their dancing old school.

REN FAIR
Short for Renaissance Fair (sometimes
faire
,
fayre
, etc.), a gathering of enthusiasts of the English Elizabethan era, involving music, food and sports of the period in a festival setting. Attracting a wide range of people,
ROMANTIGOTH
s in particular love Ren Fairs for the opportunity to wear frilly shirts or
CORSET
s, polish their swords and hang out with their
GOTHLINGS
in a family-friendly environment that nurtures their love for history.

RENFIELD
1. Fictional character in
BRAM STOKER
’s
DRACULA
and the cinematic interpretations thereof, a laywer turned lunatic under the spell of Count Dracula who eats spiders and utters the immortal words “The blood is the life!” 2. Renfield’s Syndrome, more officially known as clinical vampirism, a mental disorder in which sufferers are obsessed with the drinking of blood.

REPO! THE GENETIC OPERA
Horror rock-opera film directed by Darren Lynn Bousman, released 2008, about a future world run amok where organs can be bought — and repossessed. A gory, over-the-top romp that’s probably the only movie we’ll ever see starring Paris Hilton, Paul Sorvino and
Ogre
from
SKINNY PUPPY
together, featuring musical numbers like “Things You See in a Graveyard.” Thus, it’s developed an underground cult following of “Shadow Casts,” who dress up and “Testify!” at screenings, à la
ROCKY HORROR
. A documentary about the fandom by L.A. Goth/horror personality Spooky Dan is in the works.

RE/SEARCH PUBLICATIONS
Book and magazine publishing company founded in 1980 by V.Vale, editor of the seminal punk rock fanzine
Search & Destroy
. Devoted to alternative music, film and lifestyle when it was truly underground, its original tabloid zine plus books like
MODERN PRIMITIVES
and the
Industrial Culture Handbook
have documented with an anthropological and artful eye the greater counter-culture in which Goth exists. Essential reading.

RETAIL SLUT
Clothing store on Melrose in Los Angeles opened in 1983 by Helen Bed, a gathering place for punks, Goths, drag queens and other
FREAK
s until it closed in 2005. Assorted
DEATH ROCKER
s of note worked there, including
ROZZ WILLIAMS
and Eva O. of
CHRISTIAN DEATH
.

REZNOR, TRENT
See:
Nine Inch Nails

RICCI, DONNA
American model and clothing designer and one-time self-professed “Gothic Supermodel,” she of the ballerina-thin legs and Rapunzel-length hair. Co-creator of the Wicket Talent collective for alternative models. Now designer of
STEAMPUNK
clothing under the name Clockwork Couture.

RICE, ANNE
American author (née Howard Allen O’Brien, b. October 4, 1941), grand dame of the
VAMPIRE
tale. That one of the bestselling novelists of the twentieth century (100 million books sold and counting) dealt in gloriously Gothic stories of romantic vampire aristocrats warms the cockles of all of our black hearts. During the 1990s, her Vampire Chronicles (
INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE
,
Vampire
LESTAT
and
QUEEN OF THE DAMNED
in particular) dominated the book scene, and the films sprung from them fueled our fantasies about New Orleans, decadence and immortality, with later works doing the same for witches. So Rice’s announcement in 2005 that she was abandoning the genre, returning to Catholicism and would write henceforth only for the Lord, well, it was a mighty blow. But her canon exists to be savoured eternally, inspiration for all those who want to rule the world by writing stories of love and blood.
See also:
Anne Rice Vampire Lestat Fan Club
;
Louis
;
Rampling, Anne
;
Rocquelaure, A.N.

RIVETHEAD
A fan of
INDUSTRIAL
music, most commonly male, who dresses the part as well as listening to the music. Typical attire is militaristic in nature, often with combat boots, army pants and short/shaved hair in monochromatic black. Accessorizing with more flashy synth dreads,
TRANSMUTER
boots or
GOGGLES
has become fashionable in the post-
CYBERGOTH
age. Although rivetheads and Goths often frequent the same shops and clubs and the term “Industrial Goth” has come into use, the scenes and looks are quite distinct.
ANDROGYNY
, for one example, is not common in rivetheads. Neither is “
PULLING THE TAFFY
” or other dramatic arm gestures on the dance floor. Rather, they are more likely to be stomping up a sweat while plotting how “the war for Industrial music must be won!” (Seriously, I saw that graffiti once.) Rivethead girls do exist; they keep the market for
TRIPP NYC
baggy pants alive.

ROCKY HORROR PICTURE SHOW, THE
Horror musical film released in 1975, a parody of B-movies, starring Tim Curry as Dr. Frank-N-Furter, a “sweet transvestite from Transylvania” who looks great in
FISHNETS
. With its massive cult status for three decades now, it’s such a recognizable good-time movie that it provides a great cover for Goth Boys who want cross-dress (“Oh, it’s just a
Rocky Horror
costume!”) and its signature dance number “Time Warp” gives us something to dance to with our non-Goth family members at weddings.

ROMANTIGOTH
The bookish Goths, as interested in the Romantic poets as the
NEW ROMANTIC
punks, as well as Victoriana,
MEDIEVAL
history and the like. Typically attired in
VELVET
, lace and
POET SHIRT
s, prone to daydreaming and always finding beauty in death and decay. Like the
TRAD GOTH
s, not too interested in the Cyber scene, but prefer their playlists more on the
ETHEREAL
and
DARKWAVE
side rather than sticking with
DEATH ROCK
. The most likely to organize picnics in cemeteries and know their Beethoven from their Bach.

ROQUELAURE, A.N.
Nom de plume for
ANNE RICE
used for her Sleeping Beauty trilogy, in which she re-imagined the fairytale as an explicit
BDSM
fantasy.
The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty
(1983),
Beauty’s Punishment
(1984) and
Beauty’s Release
(1985) actually outsold her
INTERVIEW WITH A VAMPIRE
novel, which inspired her to write additional pornographic books under the name
ANNE RAMPLING
. For many who discovered them only after the breakout of the
VAMPIRE
Chronicles in the early 1990s (by which point her true identity had been revealed), they offered an introduction to the S/M world not generally found on mainstream bookshelves. Censors responded in kind: the Beauty books remain one of the most frequently challenged by libraries and other authorities.

ROSETTA STONE
British
GOTHIC ROCK
band formed by Porl King in 1988, one of the most successful second wave of acts basically re-hashing
THE SISTERS
/
MISSION
/
NEFFS
formula — right down to the drum machine with its own name (Madame Razor). Nevertheless, thanks to a North American deal with
CLEOPATRA RECORDS
, and King’s openness to communicating directly with his fanbase on Usenet groups in the pre-MySpace age, they found a global audience and a semi-hit with “Adrenaline.” After switching to a more
INDUSTRIAL
sound in the 1990s, they disappeared into the ether forever — declaring at an appearance at
WHITBY GOTHIC WEEKEND
in 1998 that they were “sick and tired with all the bullshit surrounding the scene.”

ROUGH TRADE
British record shop, label and distributor, founded by Geoff Travis in 1976, specializing in
POST-PUNK
. Best known for signing The Smiths (or, to those under thirty, The Strokes), but also home at times to
CABARET VOLTAIRE
,
VIRGIN PRUNES
and other important late ’70s acts.

RUBBER
See:
Latex

RUE MORGUE
Horror magazine and radio show based in Toronto, Canada, founded by Rodrigo Gudiño in 1997, devoted to horror films, art and culture. The
National Geographic
of horror fandom, documenting macabre entertainment and lifestyle in a serious, sexy way that’s free of Hollywood-marketing bullshit. As one of its long-time contributors, I believe it’s exposing a whole generation of horror movie nerds to great music, books and more that will set them on a darkened path for life. Not a Goth mag per se, but the world is a Gothier place for it.