The Danse Society – Live in Rotterdam – September 3, 1983 – VPRO/3VOOR12 – The Netherlands –
The Danse Society tonight. When Goth was added to the mix of Punk/Post-Punk and New Wave during the early 1980s, The Danse Society were at the forefront of what became a popular genre during the 1980s. And even though they had achieved a moderate amount of success, it wasn’t enough to keep the band together past 1987. But by then, Goth was morphing into other directions, and one of those directions was EDM which took over during the 90s and well into the present.
But in the 1980s, Goth was dark and mysterious and had a certain foreboding quality about it that appealed to a lot of people – so much so that, in addition to its potent mark on music, it also became a fashion statement – and the image of the tortured artist, as a sort of misunderstood, androgynous figure became wildly popular in some social circles.
The popularity of bands like The Danse Society spawned a number of similar acts who combined Goth with Post-Punk and New Wave and made it commercially more accessible.
Even though The Danse Society essentially broke up in 1987, there was a reformation in 2009, which brought most of the members of the band back together, with the notable exception of lead singer Steve Rawlings, who had gone solo before forming Meridian Dream. The new incarnation lasted until 2014, when two of the founding members abruptly resigned – but the band has continued with new members and released their latest album VI in September of last year.
Tonight it’s an extended excerpt of a concert given in Rotterdam in September of 1983, around the time of the release of their second album, Heaven Is Waiting. It was recorded by the venerable VPRO and this excerpt is from that broadcast.
