The first Goth music grew out of punk, and some of the early bands were very lively, characterised by tribal drumming. Things changed in the mid-eighties, mainly due to the rise of the Sisters of Mercy, probably the most well-known Goth band. The Sisters were characterised by deep vocals, simple yet prominent baselines, and simple drum machine rhythms. Unfortunately they came to typify the "Goth Sound" and too many later bands followed their example. Later on, there was some crossover with the Industrial scene, and a lot of bands now use electronic sounds as well as the archetypal guitar/bass/drum machine/vocals (in fact some current "Goth" bands sound suspiciously like old electro/industrial bands).

There is also a fair bit of "ambient" Goth, characterised by subtle instrumentation and haunting female vocals.

Lyrically, Goth tends to be on the doomy side- dark lyrics and a doomy sound is fairly typical of most (but not all) Goth these days.

 

 
  Bauhaus
 
   
 

Bauhaus are the first band who cannot be comfortably classified as anything other than Goth. UK Decay and The Banshees could be considered punk, The Cure could be considered New Wave, Joy Division could be considered post-punk but Bauhaus were unmistakably Goth in music, looks, lyrics, art and style right from their first single.In many ways they were the archetypal Goth band. They were also involved in the early Goth "scene", and had a major influence on Goth fashion.

   
         
  Siouxsie and the Banshees      
   
Were not involved in the Goth scene as such, but had a massive influence on it in terms of both music and image. Their music had been called "gothic" as far back as 1979, and their music formed the template for a lot of female-fronted Goth bands in much the same way that Siouxsie's looks provided the style for many female Goths. Between them, Siouxsie and Bauhaus pretty much designed the early Goth look
 
 
 
  The Sisters of Mercy      
 
The Sisters were not that important in the early Goth scene. Their main claim to fame in the early years is being the first of the second wave of Goth bands to release a single, though their first gig wasn't until several months later. It's odd that the Sisters came to dominate Goth, since they were so different from the rest of the early Goth bands: they had deep vocals and a drum machine whereas most of the early Goth bands were characterised by tribal drumming and none of them had vocals.
    
 
     
  Southern Death Cult      
   
One of the leading bands in the post punk, pre gothic movement of London , an emerging form of gloom and doom the band was the brainchild of Ian Asbury, the only one who would remain in the band for all of its incarnations. The southern death cult would become infamous, several lineup changes and two name changes later as the cult. It is easy to see the formative influence this earlier incarnation had on the Goth blues metal "cult", though the music is much more raw and powerful.
 
     

 

  
  The Birthday Party      
 
Came to England in early 1980, around the same time that Bauhaus were gaining popularity and some of the second wave of Goth groups were forming. Whether they were actually a "Goth" group as such is highly debatable but they arrived at the time the scene was forming and played with a fair few of its protagonists, including Bauhaus. The "Goth" tag may have been a result of this and the "Release the Bats" single (July 81), which the band regarded as something of a joke.
   
 
     
 
Sex Gang Children
UK Decay  
 
 
 
 
Along with Southern Death Cult, were one of the leaders of the new wave of Goth bands who appeared in the early 80s. They are also most likely the inspiration of the term "Goths" as applied to members of the emergent subculture.
  
Are almost forgotten now, but they were important movers in the early Goth scene. Abbo, from UK Decay, was responsible for using the word "gothic" to tag the. emerging movement
 
 
 
  The Cure      
 
like the Banshees, were not part of the scene, and were less influential. However, their music and image fitted, and they were adopted into the Goth canon. After "Pornography", one of their bleakest albums, they suddenly went in a pop direction, moving away from a Goth sound but inadvertently helping to bring the idea of "Goth" closer to the mainstream.