Liza Valero // Courtesy
Darkwave duo Dead Cool performs at Denounce Normalcy's Goth Night at Moe Joe Coffee Co.
Moe Joe Coffee Co. was overtaken by seasonally appropriate spooky sounds on Oct. 17, when goth bands Tears for the Dying and Dead Cool took the stage. The event was organized by Maxwell Greenzweig, a sophomore audio technology major who books shows in the Clemson area under the moniker “Denounce Normalcy.”
“My goal is to create a safe space where everyone is able to escape the burdens of everyday life, and be themselves as they are, not as they are expected to be,” Greenzweig said. He added that more than 100 people attended the goth night. It proves, as Greenzweig said, that “you can find your people. You just have to know where to look.”
Before the bands took the stage, Clemson student Emmerson Dillard, a senior psychology major, spun classic goth tunes by bands like The Cure and Siouxsie and the Banshees as “DJ Blood Bitch.”
“I had a lot of fun DJing,” Dillard said. “I put a lot of work into my set and I’m glad that people enjoyed it.” I particularly liked hearing Joy Division’s classic track “Shadowplay” echoing throughout the coffeehouse. Dillard returned to the stage later, maintaining the goth vibe between the bands’ sets.
The sets were a mixed bag. Tears for the Dying opened the show, bringing with them a punk-inflected goth sound with plenty of guitar effects. Their songs were solid, with a few particularly fun bass lines, but their performance was ultimately uninspiring. They overrelied on backing tracks — the lack of live drums was particularly noticeable, and the guitar and bass drowned out the comparatively quiet backing music. They sound better in the studio than they did live.
On the other hand, Dead Cool, the second and final band of the night, was great. The duo’s sound was synthier, closer to darkwave than post-punk.
“There’s something about synth duos,” attendee Clara Quinlan, a junior electrical engineering major said. “They’re basically always amazing.”
She might be onto something — Dead Cool reminded me of bands like Suicide, Soft Cell and Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark. They commanded the audience’s attention with their catchy tunes and imposing stage presence.
Overall, the show was a success. “I had no idea there were this many goths and fans of goth music at Clemson,” Quinlan said.
Alanna Gray, a sophomore biology major who was sporting impressive classic goth makeup, concurred. “It was cool that there was an event like this to support the alternative community,” she said. “I feel like the community has always been there but I don’t feel like it’s really been connected before.”
For anyone interested in checking out Tears of the Dying and Dead Cool, their music can be streamed on most platforms and you can follow them on their Instagram, @tearsforthedyingband and @deadcoolband. Denounce Normalcy’s next event is a psychedelic rock show at Moe Joe on Nov. 7. More information can be found on their Instagram, @denounce.normalcy.