30+ Goths, what are some changes you've noticed?

[Kafkaesque_Meat]

I still remember batgearbeyond, which was a website that helpfully catalogued alternative fashion sites from around the web in one easy place. That's actually a big part of why I made all those masterposts, I felt like there might be people who may no longer know where to find many of these shops so I thought it would be a good idea to compile them all in one place. I'm trying to remember exactly when I searched for them only to discover that they no longer exist....Probably mid 2010s.

I also decided to look through my old ゴスロリ(gosu rori or goth loli) magazines, and discovered that many of the brands I thought were cool are now defunct, or are barely running. That does make me happy I ended up saving them all, since I still have those patterns.

I also remember learning back in maybe 2016 that Gothic Beauty is no longer being published. I would often check for them at my local Barnes and Nobel and after years of never seeing them on the shelves I looked them up and yeah, last issue published in 2014.

Vampire Freak's social media site is also gone, I think that ended in 2019. They still have their store and run social events though, so they're not completely gone. I imagine the site just wasn't worth hosting anymore.  

[Kafkaesque_Meat]

There's good changes too, though. Like nu goth fashion is charming in it's sleekness, which is a nice alternative to the mall goth fashion of my day which is fairly busy if not cluttered. There's also a much wider selection of make-up catering to the alt crowd, like I remember when it was close to impossible to find black lipstick, and when you did it was usually of very low quality. Unnatural hair color, piercings, and tattoos are also a bit more socially acceptable now, which is good.  

[Sweet Peppermint Tea]

yum_tea It's easier to find new music now. As the subculture has integrated more with the internet over the past 20+ years, the bands that inspired us have followed suit. You can find goth rock and goth-adjacent music everywhere from YouTube to Pandora, plus a wealth of personal sites and mainstream social media. While the thrill of uncovering hidden gems isn't as pronounced, this ease of access does mean that younger people can find goth music and learn about our subculture and help keep it thriving.

DIY is easier now, too, with social media giving us the ability to trade tips and tricks across greater distances and with much less of a wait period than 'zines did. The only thing faster than watching an instructional video on how to apply spikes or make your own canvas patches is to have hands-on learning from someone IRL, which is not always something that people have.

One negative thing about the internet's integration with the goth subculture is that fast fashion treats goth even more like a disposable fad than ever. With goth fashion, you're really going to either pay in time or cash in order to get things exactly the way you need them to be, but within the last few years there have been fast fashion sites selling cheap counterfeits of popular (mostly nu) goth pieces and they're just...not good. This isn't something unique to our subculture in particular, it happens to a lot of others with very niche, eye-catching fashions, but it's still a problem.  

[Kafkaesque_Meat]

Sweet Peppermint Tea

yum_tea It's easier to find new music now. As the subculture has integrated more with the internet over the past 20+ years, the bands that inspired us have followed suit. You can find goth rock and goth-adjacent music everywhere from YouTube to Pandora, plus a wealth of personal sites and mainstream social media. While the thrill of uncovering hidden gems isn't as pronounced, this ease of access does mean that younger people can find goth music and learn about our subculture and help keep it thriving.

DIY is easier now, too, with social media giving us the ability to trade tips and tricks across greater distances and with much less of a wait period than 'zines did. The only thing faster than watching an instructional video on how to apply spikes or make your own canvas patches is to have hands-on learning from someone IRL, which is not always something that people have.

One negative thing about the internet's integration with the goth subculture is that fast fashion treats goth even more like a disposable fad than ever. With goth fashion, you're really going to either pay in time or cash in order to get things exactly the way you need them to be, but within the last few years there have been fast fashion sites selling cheap counterfeits of popular (mostly nu) goth pieces and they're just...not good. This isn't something unique to our subculture in particular, it happens to a lot of others with very niche, eye-catching fashions, but it's still a problem.

You're definitely right about DIY but I'm kind of torn with music, I kind of feel like we're in an age where a lot of young people are overwhelmed with options, and Pandora fwik tends to promote a lot of the same artists again and again rather than really allow you to discover new music. I feel like it still takes some effort to discover new music and bands.

I'm also totally with you on fast fashion. When I was trying to dig up shops that sell Gothic Lolita/Visual Kei fashions I had to sift through a lot of Aliexpress-like shops. Fortunately I still had a lot of more traditional goth and rockabilly shops saved in my bookmarks, but trying to find goth shops how is fairly difficult if you don't know what you're looking for. Especially if you don't want nu-goth fashion.  

[daff00]

i feel like a lot more people are becoming okay with themselves and allowing themselves to like things they might have felt cringe about . . .  

[Sweet Peppermint Tea]

Kafkaesque_Meat

You're definitely right about DIY but I'm kind of torn with music, I kind of feel like we're in an age where a lot of young people are overwhelmed with options, and Pandora fwik tends to promote a lot of the same artists again and again rather than really allow you to discover new music. I feel like it still takes some effort to discover new music and bands.

I'm also totally with you on fast fashion. When I was trying to dig up shops that sell Gothic Lolita/Visual Kei fashions I had to sift through a lot of Aliexpress-like shops. Fortunately I still had a lot of more traditional goth and rockabilly shops saved in my bookmarks, but trying to find goth shops how is fairly difficult if you don't know what you're looking for. Especially if you don't want nu-goth fashion.

yum_tea You have a point with Pandora, but you can game the algorithm a bit by disliking songs/bands that get too many repeats and force it to dig deep for new material. Then, when you want to hear old favorites again, clear out your dislikes and start over. I think that it's better that people have more options than less, choice paralysis doesn't last very long when you realize you can stream music nigh-endlessly instead of having to choose between two or more physical albums. Like what you hear? Buy a digital copy direct from the band, and maybe some other merch while you're at it. The internet doesn't just make it easier to find new music, it makes it easier to curate your collection and directly support the creators of the music you love. Only thing better, really, is supporting them via live shows, but with the whole panini going on right now that's not an option for many bands.

I have such a deep loathing for Aliexpress. It's bad enough that they steal designs and photography from other labels, their counterfeits aren't even well-made! I can't tell you how many times I've seen someone post images of an outfit they bought from Aliexpress not knowing that the site was a knockoff racket. Shoddy seams, nasty cheap lace, it's just bad. And I hate that they keep getting away with it just because the designers and labels they steal from don't have the star power and money to go after them.  

[Kafkaesque_Meat]

daff00

i feel like a lot more people are becoming okay with themselves and allowing themselves to like things they might have felt cringe about . . .

Yeah, people are def more accepting in general now.