Feel free to link to us.

PhillyGoth is maintained by Paul Bagosy and D.E. Christman.

There's a lot we'd like to say about this site, but in the interests of brevity, we'll keep it short. Succinctly, this site is the culmination of over a year of dreaming, asking, listening, and prodding. Suggestions were taken, tests conducted, and hairs plucked from our heads. This is the result: a site that (hopefully) functions as a resource for everything Philly and Goth, for anyone who needs it.

1. What is PhillyGoth?
2. What are the rules?
3. Rules are meant to be broken, aren't they?
4. Who can become a member?
5. Why should I become a member?
6. Is there a cost involved?
7. I'm a promoter / performer, how do I list on PhillyGoth?

[ top ] 1. What is Phillygoth?

PhillyGoth represents the Gothic/Industrial scene of the Greater Philadelphia Region. 'Philadelphia' encompasses roughly 9 million people in twelve counties spanning Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware. While there are many other towns and cities that are not Philadelphia (like Trenton, Camden, Wilmington, and Allentown, to name a few of the larger suburban cities), the entire area falls under the Greater Philadelphia region. We even claim a few people out in State College, but we're not looking to horn in on PGHGoth's territory <smirk>.

The hard question here is 'what is Goth'? The answer? Ask fifteen Goths and get thirty answers. There is no solid definition. If you've come to this site looking for info on the Philadelphia Goth scene, then chances are, you've got a few good answers of your own. I'll leave the rest up to you.

[ top ] 2. What are the rules?

Rules! Every end-user service needs to have them. I'll preface this by saying that ignorance of these rules is NO EXCUSE. So, here goes.

Privacy Statement
PhillyGoth has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to privacy. The following discloses our information gathering and dissemination methods.

Information Collection and Use
PhillyGoth is the sole owner of the information collected on this site. We will not sell, share, or rent this information to others in ways different from what is disclosed in this statement.

IP Address Use
We use your IP address to help diagnose problems with our server, and to administer our Web site. PhillyGoth logs IP addresses for system administration purposes. IP addresses are logged to track a user's session. This gives PhillyGoth an idea of which parts of our site users are visiting.

Cookies
This site uses cookies to deliver content specific to your interests and to save your password so you don't have to re-enter it each time you visit our site. Cookies allow us to both store and retrieve login information through a user's browser. Our Web server automatically asks a new user whether his or her browser will agree to accept a 'digital cookie' via the Web browser. If a visitor accepts, our web server will identify the user's cookie for PhillyGoth's use in internal reporting or for site personalization. If for some reason you would rather not take advantage of the benefits made possible with cookies, most browsers allow you to reject cookies or to choose which cookies to accept.

Links
This web site contains links to other sites. Please be aware that PhillyGoth and its staff are not responsible for the privacy practices or content of such other sites. We encourage our users to be aware when they leave our site and to read the privacy statements of each and every web site that collects personally identifiable information. This privacy statement applies solely to information collected by this Web site.

Registration Information Use
Our site's registration form requires users to give us contact information (name and email address). We may use member contact information from the registration form to send the user information about the site. PhillyGoth will not, under any circumstances, sell member information, and will only turn it over to proper authorities under subpoena. The member's contact information is also used to contact the member when necessary.

Dissemination
User's email addresses and street addresses are not displayed anywhere on the site. All other collected information (including city, state and zip code) is viewable, but is optional at the user's discretion.

Children's Guidelines
PhillyGoth does not knowingly request or collect personally identifiable information from children under 13. If such information is received, it is immediately deleted.

Ending Membership
Users may end their affiliation with this site at any time by deleting their account.

Contacting PhillyGoth
If you have any questions about this privacy statement, the practices of this site, or your dealings with this Web site, you can contact

PhillyGoth
1429 Locust Street
Norristown, PA 19401-3321

or via email

Posting Guidelines
Before posting or responding to an article, posting a link, or submitting a bio, there are a few ground rules you should be made aware of:

1. In short, don't be a jackass. It's a great rule to live by. While we understand that there are jackasses out there, there's no need to increase the jackass population, or even contribute to jackass tactics.
2. Philly Goth-related posts = Good. Drama = Bad. This site is not for drama. No ifs, ands, or buts. If you feel there's something of importance to post here, post it. Got a new night opening and want to shill for it here? Go ahead. Siouxsie and the Banshees coming to town? Post it here (don't forget to add this stuff to the calendar, though). Got a problem with the way the bouncers at Nocturne turned you away because you were tripping your ass off? Post about it in your DeadJournal. We don't care, and we don't want it here. First time, we warn you and delete it. Second time, we delete your account and ban your IP address. It's that simple.
3. Don't post a link to the complete text, just post the whole thing. We don't mind you linking to another site at the bottom, but don't post a blurb and a link. If you do repost something from another site, give full credit to the original site and author.
4. If you didn't write it, don't post it. I can't be more explicit on this one. This isn't a 'hey look what I found!'. There are plenty of other places to post stuff like that on other sites/boards/lists.
5. Don't post anything libelous, defamatory, inflammatory, or otherwise obnoxious or damaging.
6. Hate propaganda and pornography will not be tolerated! This applies to everything, including links. If a site has material that can be classified as such, DON'T LINK TO IT HERE. Exceptions may be made for sites featuring nude models with local relevance, but that typically falls under 'art'. Ask first, though.

You must have an active account to post an article or a comment. Any articles or comments that have no author were posted by people who voluntarily deactivated their accounts.

Advertisement
This site reserves the right to remove any user account for any reason at any time. Self-promotion in addition to a legitimate bio is acceptable, but bios for bands, promoters or other organizations are not permitted unless authorized by the site administration. For information on band and promoter bios, or other advertising options, please contact Paul Bagosy.

Abuse
All available information regarding anyone using this site in a manner that is deemed harmful, threatening, or harassing will be turned over to the proper authorities.

[ top ] 3. Rules are designed to be broken, aren't they?

Sure, but consequences were designed to follow. While we run a community resource here, this is NOT a democracy. If you have any illusions or reservations concerning who is in charge when it comes to this site, get rid of them now. We tend to be very lenient and even-handed, but we will not tolerate any misuse of this site. If you break a rule, we alone will determine the severity and length of the punishment. We will not hesitate to ban IP addresses, or if need be, prosecute. If you think that something may be of dubious legality or might be perceived as threatening or harassing, then DON'T DO IT. Simple as that.

[ top ] 4. Who can become a member?

Anyone over the age of 13 is welcome to become a member, but if you don't have some sort of Philadelphia area connection, there's really no sense in becoming a member. This site is technically open to anyone, though.

[ top ] 5. Why should I become a member?

As the site name implies, if you're from Philly and you're Goth, then why not join? I encourage anyone who has a connection to the Philadelphia Goth scene to sign up and contribute to this online community.

The benefits of signing up include being able to post articles, add event information, and interacting with other members on the site.

[ top ] 6. Is there a cost involved?

There is no cost to sign up or keep your account active, or to post to the site.

[ top ] 7. I'm an artist/promoter/dj/photographer, how do I list on PhillyGoth?

Artists, theatre companies, promoters, DJs, photographers and other professionals who have relevance to the Philadelphia Gothic/Industrial Scene are invited and encouraged to list their bio, website and news on PhillyGoth. To get a professional account, simply fill out the Professional account request form. While we don't ask money for this service, we do ask that you hook us up somehow. We gladly accept free CDs, guest lists to events, swag, or whatever else you see fit to throw our way.