History and character
Darkwave (dark wave) is a genre born from new wave and post-punk in the late 1970s and early 1980s, mainly in Europe: the United Kingdom, West Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France and Italy. It is also an umbrella term that includes French cold wave, ethereal wave, gothic rock, neoclassical darkwave and neofolk. The sound is largely in minor keys, introspective and melancholic, with guitar, bass, drums or drum machine, synthesizers, samplers and sometimes violin, cello and piano. In Germany a subculture developed around the “schwarze” scene and the “Neue Deutsche Todeskunst”; in France, cold wave groups such as Clair Obscur and Opera Multi Steel.
Foundational artists of the early days: Bauhaus, Joy Division, The Cure (the Seventeen Seconds, Faith, Pornography period), Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Sisters of Mercy, Depeche Mode in their darkest period, Clan of Xymox, Cocteau Twins on the ethereal side. From 2000–2010 came a strong revival: She Wants Revenge, The Soft Moon, She Past Away (Turkey), Drab Majesty, Boy Harsher, Lebanon Hanover, Linea Aspera, and the Belarusians Molchat Doma (Sudno, which went viral in 2020), who brought the genre to a very young audience via TikTok. In this entry darkwave is placed near synthwave because of shared instruments (analog synths and drum machines) and its dialogue with darksynth, but its origin is post-punk.
Aesthetic: coldness, distance, urban melancholy, lyrics about alienation and loneliness, deep and detached vocals, mechanical drum machines, melodic bass up front, guitars with chorus and reverb, icy synths.
Scales and keys
In the modes, Roman numerals refer to the scale of the mode; in minor, to the natural minor.
Natural minor (Aeolian)
- Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 (T S T T S T T). In E minor: E F# G A B C D.
- Characteristic note: b6 (C): cold melancholy.
- Chords: i Em – ii° F#dim – III G – iv Am – v Bm – VI C – VII D.
- Use: i–VI–VII, i–III–VII–VI loops; melodic bass on the scale.
Phrygian
- Formula: 1 b2 b3 4 5 b6 b7 (S T T T S T T). In E Phrygian: E F G A B C D.
- Characteristic note: b2 (F): darkness, anguish.
- Chords (modal scale): i Em – II F – III G – iv Am – v° Bdim – VI C – vii Dm.
- Use: E–F bass riffs, icy synths, hypnotic verses.
Dorian
- Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 6 b7. In A Dorian: A B C D E F# G.
- Characteristic note: major 6th (F#): major IV (D), a “bittersweet” minor widely used in post-punk (The Cure, New Order).
- Chords (modal scale): i Am – ii Bm – III C – IV D – v Em – vi° F#dim – VII G.
Harmonic minor (gothic)
- Formula: 1 2 b3 4 5 b6 7. In D minor: D E F G A Bb C#. Major V and augmented second for a gothic, theatrical color.
How to choose
| Mood | Scale |
|---|---|
| Cold melancholy | Aeolian |
| Hypnotic anguish | Phrygian |
| Post-punk bittersweet | Dorian |
| Theatrical gothic | Harmonic minor |
Harmony
Function
Minimal, hypnotic harmony: loops of 2–4 chords, often a single chord per verse, with the melodic bass as the main line (à la Peter Hook or Simon Gallup). Guitars play arpeggios or single notes with chorus over the bass. Cadences are very rare.
Techniques
- High melodic bass (mid register, played with a pick) carrying the melody while the guitar provides texture.
- Pedal tone under changing synth chords.
- Chords without the third and open fifths in the synths.
- Dorian major IV inside a minor key.
Voicing
Synths with tight, cold chords (triads or fifths), guitars with single notes and high arpeggios, bass in the mid register (often an octave above a “normal” bass).
Typical progressions
| Name | Key | Chords | Degrees | How to use it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cold loop | E minor | Em C D Em | i VI VII i | The simplest minor cycle, repeated with eighth-note bass. |
| Hypnotic Phrygian | E Phrygian | Em F Em F | i II i II | The obsessive b2 for verses and synth riffs. |
| Post-punk Dorian | A Dorian | Am D Am D | i IV i IV | The major IV gives that “bright” melancholy à la The Cure. |
| Melancholic descent | D minor | Dm C Bb A | i VII VI V | Andalusian with major V: gothic and theatrical. |
| Relative major | E minor → G major | Em C G D | i VI III VII | The chorus leaning on G gives a moment of light. |
| Bass pedal | F# minor | F#m D/F# E/F# F#m | i VI/i VII/i i | Static bass with chords moving above: static tension. |
Rhythm and groove
Rigid, mechanical feel: drum machine with four-on-the-floor or eighth-note kick (motorik and EBM influence), snare on 2 and 4 with reverb, closed hats in sixteenth notes with open hats on the offbeats. Swing 0%. The bass in continuous eighth notes is the engine; in gothic rock the played drums are more tribal (toms). Medium-fast tempos for danceable tracks (Molchat Doma, Boy Harsher), slower for gothic tracks.
Drums
Kick
Four on the floor (steps 1, 5, 9, 13) or in eighth notes on motorik tracks; dry drum machine sound (TR-606, TR-808, DR-55, LinnDrum), little sub.
Snare
On 2 and 4, dry with wide room or gated reverb; a cheap clap as a layer.
Hi-hat and percussion
Closed hats in sixteenth notes, open hats on the offbeats; tribal low toms in gothic rock (Bauhaus, Siouxsie); metallic percussion in industrial-darkwave.
Interaction
The eighth-note bass fills the space; the drums stay rigid and repetitive. The baritone voice sits on top without competing.
By section
Intro: drum machine and bass; verse: bass, drums, vocal; chorus: synth and guitar with chorus; bridge: drums removed or toms; outro: repetition and fade.
Fills and sounds
Few fills (end-of-phrase toms with reverb). Cheap, vintage, saturated drum machines. Mistakes: powerful modern drums; “human” swing or grooves that take away the coldness.
Bass
- Sound: electric bass with a pick, chorus and a bit of distortion, mid-high register; sequenced synth bass in coldwave.
- Notes: melodic lines that are the theme of the track, continuous eighth notes, octaves.
- Relationship with the kick: the bass is more present than the kick; use EQ to separate them.
- Examples: Joy Division — Love Will Tear Us Apart (Peter Hook's melodic bass), Molchat Doma — Sudno (eighth-note bass and cold synths).
Harmonic instruments
Electric guitars with chorus, flanger and reverb (arpeggios and single notes), polyphonic and mono synths with cold sounds (string machine, thin pads), organs, samplers, sometimes violin, cello and piano (neoclassical darkwave). Voicings in fifths and tight triads in the mid-high register.
Melody and vocals
- Vocals: deep, detached, often baritone (Ian Curtis, Andrew Eldritch, Egor Shkutko of Molchat Doma), almost monotone singing; ethereal female voices in ethereal wave.
- Melody: short, repeated phrases, small intervals, low register.
- Effects: long, dark reverb, delay, chorus, low doubles.
Instruments
Voice, electric bass, electric guitar, drum machine or drums, synths (polyphonic and mono), string machine, organ, sampler; violin, cello and piano in neoclassical darkwave.
Drum patterns
Synths and sounds
- Korg MS-20 V — Cold basses and leads: Filtered, biting saws, sequences.
- Jun-6 V — Thin pads with chorus: Cold pads and coldwave arpeggios.
- Solina V — String machine: “Icy” string pads typical of post-punk.
- Mini V — Synth bass: Sequenced eighth-note bass.
- Prophet-5 V — Pads and leads: Melancholic chords and leads.
- Farfisa V — Thin organ: Gothic and post-punk color.
Song structure
| Section | Bars | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Intro | 8–16 | Drum machine and bass |
| Verse 1 | 16 | Baritone vocal |
| Chorus | 8–16 | Synth and guitar, higher vocal |
| Verse 2 | 16 | |
| Chorus | 8–16 | |
| Instrumental | 8–16 | Synth or guitar solo, bass featured |
| Final chorus / outro | 16 | Repetition, fade |
Length 3:30–5:00.
Mixing and mastering
Sonic goal
Cold and spacious: bass up front, deep and reverberant vocal, dry drum machine but with ambience, wide guitars and synths; little sub, present mids. References: Joy Division — Love Will Tear Us Apart, The Cure — A Forest, Molchat Doma — Sudno, Boy Harsher — Pain, She Past Away — Durdu Dünya.
Kick
HP 40 Hz, +2 dB at 80–100 Hz, −3 dB at 300 Hz, +2 dB at 3 kHz; compression 3 dB; short room; center.
Snare
HP 120 Hz, +2 dB at 200 Hz, +2 dB at 4 kHz; hall or gated reverb 1.5–2 s; center.
Hi-hat
HP 400 Hz, slightly off to the sides; saturation.
Bass
HP 40 Hz; +2 dB at 100 Hz; +3 dB at 800 Hz–1.5 kHz (pick and melody); chorus only above 200 Hz; compression 4–6 dB; mono or slightly widened in the mids.
Guitars and synths
HP 150–200 Hz; chorus and long reverb; wide; −2 dB at 400 Hz; cold pads with a high HP (250 Hz).
Vocal
EQ: HP 70–80 Hz (baritone voice: leave the body at 120–200 Hz), −2 dB at 300 Hz, presence +2 dB at 2–3 kHz. Compression 4–6 dB. Hall/plate reverb 2–3 s, 1/4 delay with 30% feedback; optional double an octave below.
Buses and groups
Drum bus with saturation; overall bus with tape.
Sidechain
Rare; in the dance revival, light on the pads.
Master
Chain EQ → tape → compressor 1–2 dB → limiter. Target −10/−8 LUFS (lo-fi revival productions even −12), true peak ≤ −1 dBTP, PLR 9–12 dB.
Common mistakes
Bass too low in the mix (it is the main instrument); modern sub that weighs things down; vocal too dry; too much brightness.
Mix reference tracks
Joy Division — Love Will Tear Us Apart (1980); The Cure — A Forest (1980); Clan of Xymox — Stranger (1985); Boy Harsher — Pain (2016); Molchat Doma — Sudno (Boris Ryzhy) (2018).
Reference listening
- Bauhaus — Bela Lugosi's Dead (1979)
- Joy Division — Love Will Tear Us Apart (1980)
- The Cure — A Forest (1980)
- Siouxsie and the Banshees — Spellbound (1981)
- The Sisters of Mercy — Lucretia My Reflection (1987)
- Clan of Xymox — Stranger (1985)
- She Past Away — Durdu Dünya (2015)
- Boy Harsher — Pain (2016)
- Molchat Doma — Sudno (Boris Ryzhy) (2018)