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Darkwave is a relatively widely used term in the gothic-industrial subculture to describe a music genre, however it is commonly spread with confusion.

The genre is a mixture of Electronica and Classical with an Experimental style that spawned mainly out of Germany in the middle 1980s. Notable bands include: Die Form, Das Ich, The machine in the garden, and Android Lust.

Shortly after in the United States the term "darkwave" became associated with music produced on the Projekt records label because of how it was used in their printed catalog. The Projekt label carried bands such as Lycia, Black tape for a blue girl and Love Spirals Downwards, all characterized by slow, moody ethereal female vocals, with a strong Cocteau Twins influence (something like the later music of Dead Can Dance). This sense of the term darkwave would also apply to similar music from other labels carrying similar work (e.g. World Serpent and Middle Pillar).

It is commonly suggested that the term "darkwave" is used in an organic meaning as a way to gain some distance from existing terms such as "gothic" or "industrial" that are feared to be too quickly judgemental towards this style of music. You will also notice that a lot of individuals tend to mix gothic rock with darkwave since both styles have close similarities. The genre is still evolving each and every year, expecting the best out of what fans call dark musical art.

Notable Darkwave Music Artists

See: List of darkwave music artists