Playlists of Music for Every Goth Music Genre
Lovers of all things dark and macabre need an appropriately spooky soundtrack. With eons of dark music on the brain, we've curated a set of playlists for every mood and genre. Whether you want to brood like a Victorian poet or dance like a Batcave-goer in 1983, we have just the dark and moody sound you're looking for.
Goth Music Genres
From stark industrial rock to lush, inviting soundscapes, goth music genres encompass a huge variety of emotional states and vibes. For all their differences in style and instrumentation, what they share in common is a sense of mystery and romanticized darkness.
80s Goth Music
The very first goth music to emerge in the 1980s was big and bombastic, featuring echoing guitars and pounding drums, often interwoven with haunting synth melodies. The overall effect of 80s goth music is like standing in a crumbling cathedral reverberating with melancholy rock music (but make it danceable). Put on this playlist, and you'll practically be able to smell the cloves and AquaNet.
Siouxsie and the Banshees - "Spellbound"
Bauhaus - "Bela Lugosi's Dead"
Sisters of Mercy - "Lucretia, My Reflection"
Joy Division - "A Means to an End"
The Sound - "Skeletons"
Specimen - "Beauty of Poisin"
Fields of the Nephilim - "Preacher Man"
Clan of Xymox - "Medusa"
The Cure - "A Forest"
Darkwave Music
From the shimmering tape decks of the '80s to our present digital hellscape, darkwave bands have been incorporating electronic sounds into music that makes modern alienation feel lush and poetic.
Cold Cave - "A Little Death to Laugh"
Depeche Mode - "Enjoy the Silence"
Drab Majesty - "Oxytocin"
Crystal Castles - "Years of Silence"
Chelsea Wolfe - "Particle Flux"
Clan of Xymox - "A Day"
Ritual Howls - "Turkish Leather"
Goth Songs About Love
Gothic rock's premier romantic poet, Robert Smith of the Cure, penned endless odes to love and longing that listeners can discover in the band's sprawling back catalog. Beyond the Cure's melodic soundscapes, many other goth bands have also explored themes of dark devotion. Here's a list of romantic gothic songs for your tomb for two.
The Cure - "Lovesong"
Lebanon Hanover - "Tomb for Two"
London After Midnight - "Sacrifice"
Ritual Howls - "Alone Together"
This Mortal Coil - "Come Here My Love"
The Mission - "Love Me to Death"
