Dark Wave

Dark wave is a genre of rock music that incorporates a sad aesthetic into the New Wave style. It is also a fusion of Synthpop and the post-punk musical styles. This music genre originated within the avant-garde rock scenes. It also emerged during the latter part of the 1970s and the early years of the 1980s. Its development was specifically prominent in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and urban centers like New York City.

Origin of Dark Wave

The phrase has been famous in Europe since the 1980s for characterizing the dark and brooding subgenre of post-punk and new-wave music. At the time, the term "goth" was synonymous with gothic rock, while "dark wave" came to refer to a broader range of musicians who were involved in both synthesizer-based New Wave and Gothic Rock. The trend gained global recognition, giving rise to several subgenres. Some include the Ethereal Wave, exemplified by artists like the Cocteau Twins, and the Neoclassical Dark Wave, which Dead Can Dance and In the Nursery pioneered. Concurrently, several substyles affiliated with the New Wave and Dark Wave movements began to converge and mutually affect one another.

Popular Bands

The Neue Deutsche Welle, or German New Wave, has a connection to several German dark wave bands. Other bands, such as Malaria, created cabaret noir ("dark cabaret"). The Vyllies combined chanson and cabaret music elements. The phrase was first used by the American dark wave label Projekt Records. Leading artists of the west Romanesque scene, Ataraxia and The Frozen Autumn from Italy and the French Corpus Delicti, also sprang from this trend. These bands adopted a style influenced by the 1980s New Wave and post-punk music. Following 1993, the term "dark wave" (or its one-word variant, "dark wave") became linked to the Projekt Records label in the United States. The label's founder, Sam Rosenthal, adopted the term after perusing German music magazines like Zillo. The brand has since been used to market and promote artists from German record label Hyperium Records in the U.S., including Chandeen and Love Is Colder Than Death. 

A new wave of bands reignited interest in the darkwave genre for a new audience in the 2010s. A few of these acts are Pixel Grip, Drab Majesty, Spike Hellis, Kontravoid, MVTANT, Choke Chain, and Void Vision, although Boy Harsher is the most well-known. Starting in the 2010s, Substance is an annual Darkwave and Industrial music event held in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Vancouver, British Columbia, hosts the yearly Darkwave event, Verboden.

Characteristics

A few distinguishing traits set dark wave apart from other 1970s and 1980s music styles. The tempos of dark wave songs range from slow to moderate, although they are rarely rapid. Dark wave songs frequently capture the simmering intensity in famous new wave and post-punk music. In contrast to similar genres like synth-wave and cold wave, dark wave performers center their songs around synthesizers. However, dark wave mainly comprises guitars, bass, and drums. Most have at least one synthesizer. 

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