The "scene." It is mentioned often in this magazine, and in similar publications. But what are we really talking about here? Well, it is supposed to mean the gothic/industrial music scene, but this is an outdated title as most people in the scene despise the term "goth" and see it as insulting, and the fact that gothic music and industrial music have little to do with one another other than the listeners of both genres wearing a lot of black clothing. In addition, music genres like EBM, noise, and other subgenres get lumped into all of this. What the scene really means to most people is their local "goth" club night or nights that they attend where you get to listen and possibly dance to music you hopefully like with people vaguely similar to yourself, and if all goes well, have a good time. In a perfect world, you would get to listen to music you haven't heard before or at least really enjoy, people at the club would be open and conversational, connections and friendships would be built there, and all of the pretense and labels that are given to people in the scene by "normal" people outside of the scene would be dropped away, giving way to one solid, happy community. Unfortunately, this isn't a perfect world.

In reality, the scene is a much different place. A community does exist within the scene, but it is, more often than not, not a place of harmony and understanding. Backbiting, shit-talking, and gossip are a common occurrence. New people to the scene may have difficulty meeting and getting to know people unless they already know someone there to introduce them to others, or they are very socially outgoing. As with regular clubs, how you look, dress, act, and what you know all factors in when people talk to you. Club politics, drama, and rumors all play a vital role in most of what is being talked about. And meeting embers of the opposite sex with the intent of hooking up? Best of luck to you, but there is an old saying: "Goths go home alone." Not to say that you have to be involved in any of this, but the more you hang out in the scene, the more nights you go out to, the more friends you somehow manage to make within said scene, the more likely all of this pointless bullshit is going to come into your life. Can you avoid it? Well, yes. Are you likely to avoid it the longer you hang out in the scene? Probably not. The largest of the drama you will see and/or interact with is bad blood between DJs, club promoters, and bands. As small as the scene in any given city is, rivalries will always exist. Allow me to give you an example. In one major metropolitan city, there are two Saturday scene nights, located within three blocks of each other. The scene in this city happens to be large enough that both nights manage to attract enough clientele that they both are still in business and successful. Many of the patrons favor one or the other, and some go to both as they both have reasonable entrance fees. Now, you would think that aside from some ill feelings between the two club promoters, there would be little discussion; well, you would be wrong. Lines were drawn and bands and DJs that perform for one are blackballed from the other. Patrons are strongly encouraged to choose a club and stick to it, and when they don't, they are frowned upon. The tension between the two clubs gets to the point that there is an article in the local city paper about it.

Does any of this sound remotely fun or mature? No, it's neither. And what does any of it have to do with the music and relationships within the scene? Nothing! It is situations like this that make the scene less a place to find comfort and enjoyment, and more a caricature, with grownups dressing up and acting like teenagers. In many ways, the scene suffers from what I call "13th grade syndrome," wherein you have individuals carrying over all of the angst-ridden, gossip-y, social status crap that people did in high school, and inject it into the scene. This is behavior that if you did it in any other aspect of your adult life, you would come off as an immature social retard.

The problem with all of this is that there is not a simple solution to this sort of situation. The social political game within the scene has been happening since the scene's inception. Young people coming into the scene may not start out as drama queens, but after being surrounded by it for an extended period of time they soon start to become part of the problem. And those in the scene that avoid or ignore drama don't want to do anything to fix it; not that I can blame them.

So this is a call. A little gossip between friends is fine, but getting involved in full-blown drama is unnecessary. When you see people at the club now, looking around, maybe looking lost or uncomfortable, go say "hi;" they may become your new club buddy. Club promoters, help the scene, talk to other promoters, don't make DJs and bands choose sides in petty bullshit, and everyone will have a better experience out of it. I have been hearing for years that the scene is dying or that the scene is in trouble. Are you surprised with all of this pointless nonsense going on? Now, I know that in all likelihood, this article will end up doing absolutely nothing. But this is a situation that needs to be talked about. It is something I have heard people complain about for years in small groups, but never discuss it in the open. This needs to be addressed for the good of the scene and any hope of keeping it alive.

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