[Events] Wave-Gotik-Treffen 2019
As every year, the city of Leipzig, Germany, turned black again on the Pentecost weekend. All the shops pull out the few black things they have and showcase them in their windows, the restaurants create special "gothic" dishes (especially beloved is the black ice cream), and even some tourists from around the federal state and sometimes the rest of Germany come to see what still is a "strange" spectacle for many people: the wider Goth subculture travelling to the city to experience music, culture and other art of various kinds while seeing their friends again.
For me, it was my second WGT and again I loved every second of it. I enjoy being around people like and similar to me, finally being able to wear what I can't necessarily wear most of the time, and finally not feeling like I'm in the minority. Usually as someone from the wider subculture it's not easy to exist without being treated as something weird but when you are around so many people who share the same and similar interests it finally doesn't feel like you are someone who doesn't fit in. And while outsiders still consider it weird, you aren't just a small group anymore but many others like you are there and enjoy what the subculture has to offer.
Like last year, we took the train to Leipzig on Thursday. We should have expected the Deutsche Bahn to have some issue again but having to change trains as we didn't know that our train was going an hour earlier was not something anyone of us thought of. Still, we got to Leipzig without other problems and could explore the city a bit again and get our festival wristbands.
On Friday we finally got around to see the Victorian Picnic for ourselves. Last year we didn't get around to see it, which maybe was a good thing as it was so full according to others as well as pictures and videos. Not that it wasn't full this year but we left before it got really bad as I wanted to see a band.
The Victorian Picnic, for those of you who have never really delved into the WGT or even the Gothic subculture, is as the name says a picnic but there is so much more to it. It's a huge amount of goths in mostly historical and history inspired clothes descending onto the Clara-Zetkin-Park in Leipzig to have a picnic and meet others from the subculture who enjoy similar things. As most parts of this festival even the Victorian Picnic is some kind of family meeting for many and this is the romantic kind.
From flowing ball gowns to steampunk outfits you will find many gorgeous outfits that interpret the past in a modern way or sometimes even try to accurately represent what people wore at, for example, the court of Louis XIV or later on from the court of Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette.
I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked but I do recommend you to check out videos on Youtube of the Victorian Picnic (or in German "Das Viktorianische Picknick") from all the past years. A video like this one will give you a better impression of what it's like there.
As I said before we left a bit earlier to see a band, which was Hell Boulevard from Switzerland. I've wanted to check out their live performance for a while now and I definitely enjoyed it. I also always love to see bands work with each other and I was positively surprised to see Florian Grey perform "Zero Fucks Given" with the band.
After the more glam-influenced Alternative Rock of Hell Boulevard we went to see a band that couldn't be more different: the Italian Neo-Classical band Camerata Mediolanense who blew me away with their music.
One thing among many I will always love about this subculture is the variety in music. And you will have bands play at festivals who aren't actually part of the subculture but fit so well with it. Many of us do enjoy classical music and so it's not a surprise that you will find neo-classical acts like this group (though according to their website they do have founding members who loved post-punk which is one of the genres of the goth subculture). I definitely got goosebumps the whole concert over, and the location was gorgeous as well. Also, this is probably one of the very few classical events at which you can hear the audience whistle and such to show their appreciation after a song.
In the evening we went to see In Strict Confidence who I would definitely consider one of my favorite bands from the wider subculture. I would consider myself to be very picky regarding electronic music even from the subculture, but their mix with elements of some other genres in combination with the a male and a female singer just works really well for me. I also love the aesthetic of their music videos a lot.
On Saturday we went to the Agra to look around the booths. The Agra is an exhibition site in the south of Leipzig which is used for various events. At the WGT two of its halls are used, one for shopping and one for concerts. There is a smaller one that's used as well but it's mostly a bar area and used for parties.
One thing I think is a great way of describing the Agra shopping area at WGT to people outside of the subculture or from countries with smaller communities is: Think of Harry Potter walking into Diagon Alley for the first time, how his mouth kept hanging open and his eyes lit up seeing everything. This is what it's like to enter this hall. There is everything for any kind of darkly inclined person, from clothes to house decorations to books and CDs. While there are also some stores that basically sell low-quality stuff that might somewhat fit with us, you will find the brands of the subculture and small artists selling their creations as well. Especially the smaller artists are what I enjoy a lot and are people who need more support from people. In general. Not just in the subculture.
Later that day we went to see Sanguis Et Cinis, an Austrian band from the nineties often regarded as being Gothic Rock or something related to that. While the music was really good (but the location "Felsenkeller" was basically a sauna) we did talk to someone afterwards who had seen them back in the nineties and said that they got technically better but the singer wasn't acting appropriately for what they were back then and the position they have nowadays. I personally missed some stuff he said during the show but I do have to agree that he was a bit insulting to people who might have been in the audience and also a bit too elitist on what the subculture is. If the subculture hadn't changed over time we wouldn't exist anymore. That's all I'm saying on that because I don't want to rant about this now.
The next day was probably the best we had that weekend in terms of music. First, we went to the church ruin in Wachau, a small town next to Leipzig, to see The Moon and the Nightspirit, a Hungarian Folk band. The location fit so well and I would love to see another act at some point there. The ruin itself also has a small cemetery in front of it. And yes, I couldn't keep myself from making the "goths in their natural habitat" joke to my best friend. A bit of a self-deprecating joke never really hurts in this subculture.
Also, after the concert when we went to the bus stop there were like 30 Goths or so and the bus driver, when he came around the corner, didn't know if he should laugh or cry when he saw all of us. And in small towns and villages here buses tend to only pass every hour on Sundays, sometimes even just every other hour. We did make it on the bus thankfully and despite the fact that it was a sardine tin basically the ride back to where we could take the tram was fun as we were all still very entertained by the reaction of the bus driver.
The second artist we saw was Henric de la Cour, a Swedish artist from the subculture who also has been around since the 90s. His style is more on the electronic side and the concert was just fantastic. Beautiful songs underlined with very fitting lightening and the very fluid movements of Henric. Definitely an artist I would recommend to anyone who likes stuff like 80s Wave and Synth Pop music.
When we went to buy us at least one of his CDs after the show we actually saw that he would be signing as well so we got our new CDs signed. Didn't take a picture but I got his new album "Gimme Daggers" and my best friend got his first solo album named after himself because it contains one of her favorite songs by him.
Then in the evening we originally wanted to also see Lord of the Lost but because of timing reasons we didn't manage to. But we thankfully got to see another act at the Agra who we wanted to see again as well. London After Midnight. another act from the nineties but this time from the US. Their music moves somewhere between alternative rock, dark rock, and gothic rock, but as music subgenres are hard to define anyway let's just go with alternative rock as this does tell people a lot more about what they could be.
What they are is a fantastic band with great messages in their work and great music in general. It was a bit disappointing to see them struggle with technical issues this time but they performed well despite that. Still, their M'era Luna performance last year was a bit better. Though I was also in the second or third row then so maybe that also made some difference. This year we were so exhausted we kept to the back. Still enjoyed the show a lot and I'm so glad we went to see them again. We had to decide between them and Cradle of Filth and after hearing how Cradle's concert went that evening I'm very glad we decided to see LAM whose only problem that evening were technical issues.
On Monday we finally did some proper shopping. What I got you will be able to see on my Instagram shortly after this post is up. I got another piece of jewelry from the lovely Majjsan and finally got a She Past Away t-shirt which I've been eyeing since last year when I couldn't buy one at their concert.
We also saw Nachtmahr but that mostly because my best friend likes them. They've got good beats but I will never be able to deal with the intentionally trying to shock with nazi and military symbolism.
After the whole weekend I was deadass tired but happy. I seriously can't wait for next year and hopefully we'll be this lucky again with the bands we get to see.
___
Disclaimer: I wasn't asked to promote any website, social media account, brand, person, or the festival. Everything I said was my own opinion and how I felt about the artists and the festival. Also, English isn't my native language so please excuse any mistakes or annoying repetitions I made. I wanted to get this up this weekend so I can focus on other things.
Follow Me: Instagram | Goodreads | Letterboxd
For me, it was my second WGT and again I loved every second of it. I enjoy being around people like and similar to me, finally being able to wear what I can't necessarily wear most of the time, and finally not feeling like I'm in the minority. Usually as someone from the wider subculture it's not easy to exist without being treated as something weird but when you are around so many people who share the same and similar interests it finally doesn't feel like you are someone who doesn't fit in. And while outsiders still consider it weird, you aren't just a small group anymore but many others like you are there and enjoy what the subculture has to offer.
Like last year, we took the train to Leipzig on Thursday. We should have expected the Deutsche Bahn to have some issue again but having to change trains as we didn't know that our train was going an hour earlier was not something anyone of us thought of. Still, we got to Leipzig without other problems and could explore the city a bit again and get our festival wristbands.
On Friday we finally got around to see the Victorian Picnic for ourselves. Last year we didn't get around to see it, which maybe was a good thing as it was so full according to others as well as pictures and videos. Not that it wasn't full this year but we left before it got really bad as I wanted to see a band.
 |
| Just an example of two gorgeous ladies at the picnic |
The Victorian Picnic, for those of you who have never really delved into the WGT or even the Gothic subculture, is as the name says a picnic but there is so much more to it. It's a huge amount of goths in mostly historical and history inspired clothes descending onto the Clara-Zetkin-Park in Leipzig to have a picnic and meet others from the subculture who enjoy similar things. As most parts of this festival even the Victorian Picnic is some kind of family meeting for many and this is the romantic kind.
From flowing ball gowns to steampunk outfits you will find many gorgeous outfits that interpret the past in a modern way or sometimes even try to accurately represent what people wore at, for example, the court of Louis XIV or later on from the court of Louis XVI and his wife Marie Antoinette.
 |
| The gorgeous Angelina (@quibuuu on IG) |
I didn't take as many pictures as I would have liked but I do recommend you to check out videos on Youtube of the Victorian Picnic (or in German "Das Viktorianische Picknick") from all the past years. A video like this one will give you a better impression of what it's like there.
 |
| The lovely Ciwana Black and her friend La Dy Flauschig @ Clara-Zetkin-Park |
As I said before we left a bit earlier to see a band, which was Hell Boulevard from Switzerland. I've wanted to check out their live performance for a while now and I definitely enjoyed it. I also always love to see bands work with each other and I was positively surprised to see Florian Grey perform "Zero Fucks Given" with the band.
After the more glam-influenced Alternative Rock of Hell Boulevard we went to see a band that couldn't be more different: the Italian Neo-Classical band Camerata Mediolanense who blew me away with their music.
One thing among many I will always love about this subculture is the variety in music. And you will have bands play at festivals who aren't actually part of the subculture but fit so well with it. Many of us do enjoy classical music and so it's not a surprise that you will find neo-classical acts like this group (though according to their website they do have founding members who loved post-punk which is one of the genres of the goth subculture). I definitely got goosebumps the whole concert over, and the location was gorgeous as well. Also, this is probably one of the very few classical events at which you can hear the audience whistle and such to show their appreciation after a song.
In the evening we went to see In Strict Confidence who I would definitely consider one of my favorite bands from the wider subculture. I would consider myself to be very picky regarding electronic music even from the subculture, but their mix with elements of some other genres in combination with the a male and a female singer just works really well for me. I also love the aesthetic of their music videos a lot.
On Saturday we went to the Agra to look around the booths. The Agra is an exhibition site in the south of Leipzig which is used for various events. At the WGT two of its halls are used, one for shopping and one for concerts. There is a smaller one that's used as well but it's mostly a bar area and used for parties.
One thing I think is a great way of describing the Agra shopping area at WGT to people outside of the subculture or from countries with smaller communities is: Think of Harry Potter walking into Diagon Alley for the first time, how his mouth kept hanging open and his eyes lit up seeing everything. This is what it's like to enter this hall. There is everything for any kind of darkly inclined person, from clothes to house decorations to books and CDs. While there are also some stores that basically sell low-quality stuff that might somewhat fit with us, you will find the brands of the subculture and small artists selling their creations as well. Especially the smaller artists are what I enjoy a lot and are people who need more support from people. In general. Not just in the subculture.
Later that day we went to see Sanguis Et Cinis, an Austrian band from the nineties often regarded as being Gothic Rock or something related to that. While the music was really good (but the location "Felsenkeller" was basically a sauna) we did talk to someone afterwards who had seen them back in the nineties and said that they got technically better but the singer wasn't acting appropriately for what they were back then and the position they have nowadays. I personally missed some stuff he said during the show but I do have to agree that he was a bit insulting to people who might have been in the audience and also a bit too elitist on what the subculture is. If the subculture hadn't changed over time we wouldn't exist anymore. That's all I'm saying on that because I don't want to rant about this now.
The next day was probably the best we had that weekend in terms of music. First, we went to the church ruin in Wachau, a small town next to Leipzig, to see The Moon and the Nightspirit, a Hungarian Folk band. The location fit so well and I would love to see another act at some point there. The ruin itself also has a small cemetery in front of it. And yes, I couldn't keep myself from making the "goths in their natural habitat" joke to my best friend. A bit of a self-deprecating joke never really hurts in this subculture.
Also, after the concert when we went to the bus stop there were like 30 Goths or so and the bus driver, when he came around the corner, didn't know if he should laugh or cry when he saw all of us. And in small towns and villages here buses tend to only pass every hour on Sundays, sometimes even just every other hour. We did make it on the bus thankfully and despite the fact that it was a sardine tin basically the ride back to where we could take the tram was fun as we were all still very entertained by the reaction of the bus driver.
The second artist we saw was Henric de la Cour, a Swedish artist from the subculture who also has been around since the 90s. His style is more on the electronic side and the concert was just fantastic. Beautiful songs underlined with very fitting lightening and the very fluid movements of Henric. Definitely an artist I would recommend to anyone who likes stuff like 80s Wave and Synth Pop music.
When we went to buy us at least one of his CDs after the show we actually saw that he would be signing as well so we got our new CDs signed. Didn't take a picture but I got his new album "Gimme Daggers" and my best friend got his first solo album named after himself because it contains one of her favorite songs by him.
Then in the evening we originally wanted to also see Lord of the Lost but because of timing reasons we didn't manage to. But we thankfully got to see another act at the Agra who we wanted to see again as well. London After Midnight. another act from the nineties but this time from the US. Their music moves somewhere between alternative rock, dark rock, and gothic rock, but as music subgenres are hard to define anyway let's just go with alternative rock as this does tell people a lot more about what they could be.
What they are is a fantastic band with great messages in their work and great music in general. It was a bit disappointing to see them struggle with technical issues this time but they performed well despite that. Still, their M'era Luna performance last year was a bit better. Though I was also in the second or third row then so maybe that also made some difference. This year we were so exhausted we kept to the back. Still enjoyed the show a lot and I'm so glad we went to see them again. We had to decide between them and Cradle of Filth and after hearing how Cradle's concert went that evening I'm very glad we decided to see LAM whose only problem that evening were technical issues.
On Monday we finally did some proper shopping. What I got you will be able to see on my Instagram shortly after this post is up. I got another piece of jewelry from the lovely Majjsan and finally got a She Past Away t-shirt which I've been eyeing since last year when I couldn't buy one at their concert.
We also saw Nachtmahr but that mostly because my best friend likes them. They've got good beats but I will never be able to deal with the intentionally trying to shock with nazi and military symbolism.
After the whole weekend I was deadass tired but happy. I seriously can't wait for next year and hopefully we'll be this lucky again with the bands we get to see.
___
Disclaimer: I wasn't asked to promote any website, social media account, brand, person, or the festival. Everything I said was my own opinion and how I felt about the artists and the festival. Also, English isn't my native language so please excuse any mistakes or annoying repetitions I made. I wanted to get this up this weekend so I can focus on other things.
Follow Me: Instagram | Goodreads | Letterboxd
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