

Reason 3: It was a time of self-discovery.

I'm sure everyone has their own babybat stories, but everyone who has made that transition from mainstream to alternative clothing can recall the reactions from their peers. I've said for years that you truly find out who your friends are when you go Goth. I also remember discovering more about who I was as a person and getting in touch with emotions I had long repressed because that was the cultural norm. Add this to the natural teenage tendency for self-discovery and identity exploration, and there's no doubt that being a teenage Goth was both enlightening and, at times, a bit frightening. Although it was sad to see many of my peers end up abandoning the style and “going mainstream” for whatever reason, it is also very encouraging to see a babybat decide to stick with the culture and become a fully-fledged Goth.



Reason 2: It was a statement.

This is probably the most obvious reason on the list. Even in the early 2000's when it was at its peak, being a mall goth was still NOT a popular thing to do. Especially in small conservative towns, parents would shield their children, police would follow you, and Jehovah's Witnesses would make you priority number one. This is still true for many Goths, and for those that have been in the scene for a long time, this is merely a minor nuisance. In spite of all the taunts, stares, and attempted exorcisms, it's undeniable that being a mall Goth was provocative to people in the same way that being a regular Goth today still provokes people. People are afraid of what they don't understand, but sometimes making people uncomfortable is the best way to make them start asking questions and challenging the norms in their own lives. Even though many Goths don't consider mall Goths to be true Goths, to the casual observer during this time, they were. And they were just as effective at intriguing people as regular Goths still are today.



Reason 1: It was a gateway to becoming a regular Goth.

I mentioned at the beginning of this blog that many babybats did not experience the mall Goth era. Perhaps some first experienced the scene before the mid 90's and the ascension of Marilyn Manson, and maybe others began to explore Goth in more recent years. Still others might have once been a mall Goth but moved on to other trends (such as emo or hipster) after its decline. However, there are many of us (myself included) who were mall Goths but used that stage as a platform for evolving into the lifelong Goths that we are today. We might look back on that stage with embarrassment or disdain, but I honestly don't think that should be the case. We should embrace that era as simply a starting point in the journey that every Goth takes as they mature and discover more and more of the music, fashion, and staples of the current scene. Bands like Marilyn Manson, Rob Zombie and others were my first exposure to “dark” music, and that path eventually led me to discovering Bauhaus, The Sisters of Mercy, and countless other Goth bands that I still adore and frequently add to my DJ setlists. Movies such as Tim Burton films and The Crow (which I discovered during my mall Goth days) are still enjoyed by regular Goths today. And, as I mentioned earlier, there are quite a few fashion staples enjoyed by mall Goths that have carried over to the wardrobe of a normal Goth. We may live in an age of trends that come and go and constantly changing fashion staples, but it's important to always remember where we came from and the origins of our Goth experience. For many of us, being a mall Goth was our first exposure to the scene as a whole. Therefore we should view this time not with embarrassment or disdain, but with appreciation...appreciation for what it would lead to and for the good times experienced during this gone-but-never-forgotten era.

Just for fun...here are some of the mall Goth shirt slogans that I still remember:

You laugh because I'm different. I laugh because you're all the same

I scare my own parents

Normal people scare me

I bet you were an ugly baby

Chicks dig scrawny pale guys

I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message

Anticrombie

5 out of 4 people have a problem with fractions

I have kidnapped myself. Give me 1,000,000 dollars or you'll never see me again

I didn't lose my mind. I sold it on ebay

Don't blame me. Blame video games