Goths of Glasgow in the early 2000’s: 13 pictures from Cathouse’s biggest nights of the noughties

Cathouse is the quintessential Glasgow alternative nightclub - and is as fundamental to the formation and culture of Glasgow’s nightlife scene as the likes of the Garage or even the beloved Barrowlands Ballroom.

While the Garage has an eclectic mix of popular club nights and the Barrowlands puts on just about any artist who’s good enough, Cathouse was always committed to championing alternative artists that had a burgeoning scene in the city and beyond.

They weren’t afraid of being too weird, which quickly earned them their reputation as Glasgow’s premiere goth nightclub - whether that was derogratory or not depends on who you spoke to.

Cathouse has tried to shake that reputation, with their new slogan; ‘Cathouse, not just for goths’. While Cathouse was always meant to be an inclusive place for folks who wouldn’t enjoy the tunes at regular club nights, it was never meant to cater to just one sub-culture, whether that be any number of different kind of metal-heads or new avant-garde rock fans - Cathouse catered to all of the underground music scene.

Some of the biggest acts to play in Cathouse include: Anthrax; Black Stone Cherry; Frank Carter and the Rattlesnakes; Pearl Jam; Bring Me the Horizon; Queens of the Stone Age; Fall Out Boy; Halestorm; Beartooth; Static X; Soil; and Shangela.

The club was opened on Brown Street in 1990 during Glasgow’s year as the European City of Culture, and can be seen as a kind of dark sister to The Garage - much like the megaclub on Sauchiehall Street, Cathouse is also set over three levels with different genres on every floor.

Now the club sits on its new home on Union Street, a move they made in 1997.

Interested in Glasgow’s goth culture? Read this article on the Glasgow band that inspired goth style.

We wanted to take a look back at some of the biggest nights at the Cathouse in the early 2000’s, here’s just some of what we could find.