Hump Day lunch with Bauhaus this week – recorded at Old Waldorf in San Francisco by the inimitable Terry Hammer on December 15, 1982.
Bauhaus formed in Northampton in 1978. Known for their dark image and gloomy sound, Bauhaus are one of the pioneers of gothic rock, although they mixed many genres, including dub, glam rock, psychedelia, and funk.[3] The group consisted of Daniel Ash (guitar, saxophone), Peter Murphy (vocals, occasional instruments), Kevin Haskins (drums) and David J (bass).
Bauhaus are frequently considered to be the inventors of goth; however, the band rejected this label, preferring to describe their style as “dark glam”. Peter Murphy said he felt their contemporaries had a larger hand in solidifying what became goth. Likewise, Kevin Haskins felt that bands such as Siouxsie and the Banshees were more influential to goth subculture than themselves and mentioned that Bauhaus were “…more three dimensional, more art rock”. Ash nevertheless admitted: “if you wear black and your first single is “Bela Lugosi’s Dead”, you’ve pretty much got a stamp on you. That’s always been one of our strongest songs, so it’s sort of undeniable”.
Bauhaus’s fanbase extends beyond music; the American novelist Chuck Palahniuk was influenced by “Bela Lugosi’s Dead” when writing his 2005 novel Haunted. In James O’Barr‘s 1989 comic book The Crow, the facial features of Eric Draven were based on those of Peter Murphy. In Neil Gaiman‘s series The Sandman, Dream‘s face and appearance were also based on Murphy.Additionally, comic book writer Alan Moore wrote the sleeve notes of Mask and contributed an anonymous Bauhaus review called “Phantoms of the Teenage Opera” to the UK music paper Sounds.
In terms of live performances, Bauhaus’ stage theatrics, specifically their lighting, was inspired by a Judas Priest concert that Murphy attended with Bauhaus’ manager. They predominantly used black and white lighting for their live shows. When they were asked why in early interviews, David J responded, “…coloured lights are for Christmas trees.” Their lighting was so minimal that sometimes the band would play in almost complete darkness where they were glimpsed rather than seen in their shows. Their manager Graham Bentley helped with the lighting, “I started doing lights for Bauhaus – which obviously came about because I was the person who was there – I got into it very much from the start. I love the shadows. I used to call it a dark show rather than a light show. The essential emphasis was less light.” Bentley used industrial lights for the lighting and put the lights on the floor rather than the ceiling. Also, a strobe light would be used for Murphy to hold on to his body and move around with it on stage.
If you want to know what they were up to in 1982 – grab a seat and press Play and dive back to the Old Waldorf.
