Le Phonographique (often called the Phono, and later renamed to Bar Phono) was a

gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

nightclub A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gener ...

located underneath the Merrion Centre in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

. Founded under the name the WigWam club, the venue's 1979 rebranding led to it becoming a location frequented by members of both the local

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad music genre, genre of Punk Music, punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde s ...

and New Romantic scenes. Here, the two scenes collided and created the earliest phase of the goth subculture. It was the first goth club in the world, opening in 1979 and eventually closing in 2005.

Disc jockey A disc jockey, more commonly abbreviated as DJ, is a person who plays recorded music for an audience. Types of DJs include radio DJs (who host programs on music radio stations), club DJs (who work at a nightclub or music festival), mobile ...

s at the club, such as

Marc Almond Peter Mark Sinclair "Marc" Almond, (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer. Almond first began performing and recording in the synthpop/ new wave duo Soft Cell where he became known for his distinctive soulful voice and androgynous image. ...

(a member of

Soft Cell Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consists of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The band are primarily known for their 1981 hit version of "Tainted Love" and their pla ...

), DJ Mark M (previously of Tiffany's), Anni Hogan (a member of

Marc and the Mambas Marc and the Mambas were a new wave group, formed by Marc Almond in 1982 as an offshoot project from Soft Cell. The band's line-up changed frequently, and included Matt Johnson from and Annie Hogan, with whom Almond worked later in his solo ...

) and Claire Shearsby (previously of the

F Club The F Club (later known as Fan Club) was a punk rock and post-punk club night in Leeds that ran between 1977 and 1982. It was held at various venues across the city during its tenure, including Leeds Polytechnic, the Ace of Clubs, the Continent ...

), would play gothic rock and

dark wave Dark wave (also typeset as darkwave) is a music genre that emerged from the new wave and post-punk movement of the late 1970s. Dark wave compositions are largely based on minor key tonality and introspective lyrics and have been perceived as be ...

music. In 1985,

the Clash The Clash were an English rock band formed in London in 1976 who were key players in the original wave of British punk rock. Billed as "The Only Band That Matters", they also contributed to the and new wave movements that emerged in the w ...

played an impromptu gig at the venue while attending.

Closure and legacy

The club was foundational to the emergence of the goth subculture by helping it differentiate itself from the conventions of

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

. There was a rivalry between it and the Bassment, another goth club that opened around the corner in the Merrion Centre a few years later.

The Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasi ...

song Floorshow was inspired by dances that were commonplace at the club. In an article for

Dazed ''Dazed'' (''Dazed & Confused'' until February 2014) is a bi-monthly British style magazine founded in 1991. It covers music, fashion, film, art, and literature. Dazed is published by Dazed Media, an independent media group known for producing ...

, it was stated that the "two steps forward, two steps back" style of dancing originated at the club, due to the pillar in the centre of its dancefloor. The club closed in 2005, claiming "redevelopment". The site is now a retail storage unit.

References

{{Goth subculture Goth subculture Goth venues Dark wave Music venues completed in 1979 Music venues in Leeds 1979 establishments in England Nightclubs in England Club nights