Emo vs Goth – 10 Ways to Tell the Difference
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Gothic Emo Style! It's a term we hear a lot lately. Yet the addicts in every community clearly state that an Emo is an Emo and a Goth is a Goth. There is no combination of words, no style.
Although Emo and Goth have striking similarities, they have some criteria of differentiation that are worth stating. One thing is certain, Emo and Goth are both unified by a primary root: punk rock. However, these are two different types of music. Emo expresses the emotional hardcore of punk rock, while Goth relates to gothic rock music. Through this article, let's review 10 very concrete ways to differentiate them.
1- From a historical point of view
As previously stated, the term goth is a subculture of punk just like Emo. Gothic rock or gothic rock acquired a solid and remarkable reputation at the end of 1980. This year also marked the end of the hardcore rock era. Nicknamed "post punk", the gothic subculture quickly won over many fanatics, the vast majority of whom were hardcore rock fans converted to this new state of mind and musical genre.
In the mid-1980s, the term Emo also appeared, but did not find its place in the punk universe until a little later, in 1990. Already called Emo at that time, the term comes from Emocore, which is an abbreviation of the term emotional hardcore. Many people say that Emo is a musical subgenre of "post-hardcore".
2- Type of music and message conveyed
Emo and Goth have the same musical influences. However, they differ in their rhythms and lyrics. Emo, also known as Emocore, has quite violent rhythms because it is characterized by strong emotions. The throughline of this music is based on emotion and evokes teenage romance. These are the principles of hardcore Pink pop.
On the other hand, if Goth appeared before Emo, it detached itself much more from the original punk and opted for the electro style. Gothic texts rather convey an atmosphere of horror, darkness and morbidity through literature and architecture.
3- Themes linked to each subculture
Goths love everything dark and anything attached to darkness. They therefore indulge in witchcraft, black magic and vampirism. The gothic spirit then joins the morbid and it is so visible in everything they do. They like to connect to the spiritual world and adopt evil patterns.
Emo ignores this and adopts a different, more open theme. Even though they focus on the color black, they do not focus on a single type of emotion, but deal with various emotional characters. They choose a variety of colors to make their appearance complete. This is what gives it its name emotional hardcore.
4- Favorite color
Emo and Goth are two types of people who worship rock music. The go-to color for rock fans is black, but even black can take on two different appearances. Emo adopts the color black, but combines it with other fluorescent and bright colors, such as pink or purple. This color combination is an Emocore trend. Moreover, it is a sufficient means to mark the total dissimilarity with the Goths. The Goths, on the other hand, rely on the color black without any other color element.
5- Emo and gothic appearance
At first glance, it is quite difficult to distinguish Emo from Goths by their appearance. This difference becomes evident if one pays more attention to the details. Emos display their reputation with patched accessories , pins and bags. Gothic clothing is a little lighter. Added to this are morbid motifs, skulls or crosses. Sometimes we can also see astral patterns like stars or the moon. Extravagant jewelry and fashion accessories are an integral part of their dress code.
Accessories are therefore a major differentiating factor of the Emo and Goth look. You need to have the right accessories to avoid a faux pas when choosing your punk subculture style.
6- Typical emo and gothic outfit
For Emo, outfits aren't just black. They use dominant but mysterious colors. This means their clothing can be any color other than black. They do not follow a particular trend. Instead, Emos wear simple, soft clothing like vintage t-shirts , v-neck sweaters , sweatshirts, skinny jeans, and scarves. Emo's even wear soft shoes with converse or creepers on their feet.
Goths, on the other hand, only wear dark colored clothing, with a lot of black. They carefully choose the materials their clothes are made from. Leather, lace and suede are essential elements to complete a gothic garment. These are the specifics of the Gothic style. Miniskirts and mini shorts are also a feature of gothic clothing. They tend to show off their corpulence especially in the middle of summer.
7- Their behavior
The behavior of emos is similar to that of extroverts. They show their feelings without hiding and without worrying about what others may think. They then defend their ideologies and embrace them with fervor. Emos are thoughtful, sensitive and emotional beings. Most of the time, the violence they convey through their words has considerable effects on their behavior. Most of the time, the behavior of Emos is associated with sadness, loneliness, anxiety, depression.
At the same time, the goth has an attitude compatible with solitude. They are introverted and behave similarly to pensive and isolated people. This makes them strange personalities in the eyes of the community.
8- The particularity of emo and gothic groups
Gothic groups are those who sing of melancholy and hum the darkness of music. We're not talking about black music here, which is something else entirely, but music in its darkest form. Let us cite the following gothic groups:
- Mercy and Bauhaus
- The Cure
- Joy division
- Rites of SpringsEdit
- Jimmy Eastwood
- MCR
- Fall Out Boy
9- Each subculture has its own culture
Emos are intellectually resilient and loyal to their community. No one can influence them to change their style or convert to an ideology other than theirs, no matter how specific it may be. Emos simply say: "I take my style and I express myself, I assume what I am without worrying about others. Any emo who respects himself dresses in his own style without pain or worry. Black is their favorite color. Emos have their own hairstyle, with a side border. For emo culture, black is not a goal, but it is the basis to express what is wrong. Accessories are a part inseparable from culture and cannot be separated from Emo.
Goth surrounds itself with punk rock music and focuses on the dark genre. Besides, the people who dominate the gothic world are almost adults. In other words, their words and ideas are of little interest to most adolescents. Goths have had their initiations since Victorian literature. To be Gothic, the manifestation of Gothic culture through clothing is important. The same goes for morbid makeup. Goth is distinguished by dark looks like black and his music is also called cold and dark music. All of these movements show the influence of Gothic literature and culture.
10- Their degree of popularity
These two subgenres of music have each achieved immense popularity in the hearts of punk fans. However, in the United States, it was Emo that made the difference. Later, it spread to Western Europe and touched the hearts of young people with its expressive appearance in the United Kingdom and France. Gothic has spread throughout the world. We see young goths in every country. There are not very many of them, but they stand out for their outfits, their skull accessories and the black color they wear from head to toe.
Emo and Goth have similarities, but it's best to differentiate them. Although they come from the same musical influence, their states of mind are very different. After deconstructing these 10 differentiating traits, Emo and Goth are totally different and the color black is not enough to say that they are similar. An Emo person does not share the same ideologies as a Goth person. So, are you Emo or Goth, or what suits you best? Claim your belonging to one of the two subcultures punk rock, emo and goth!