Bauhaus was steeped in theatricality, but there
was surprisingly little drama to its return from the dead 10 years ago. In
fact, the band's sporadic tours since its 1998 reformation wound up leeching a
lot of the mystique from the goth godfather. At the same time, Peter Murphy and
crew finally came into their own trademark ghoulishness—after all,
there's nothing like a few wrinkles to augment a gaunt, skull-like countenance.
So, having grown more human and more eerie, Bauhaus has
unleashed Go Away White, its first studio album since 1983. Funnily enough, The
Beatles are the first thing heard on the disc—specifically, the purloined
bassline of "Taxman" that fuels "Too Much 21st Century." But inspirations
aside, Bauhaus now sounds more like Bauhaus than it ever did—and yet it
doesn't sink into self-parody, even when cannibalizing its own lyrics and
death-knell guitar. While many cult bands can't make a dignified comeback to
save their lives, the raw, slithering, true-to-its-roots Go Away White is more than a swansong. It's
a minor masterpiece that proves Bauhaus has been nicely preserved.