Rosetta Stone

Goth rock outfit Rosetta Stone started in 1988 when vocalist/guitarist Porl King and bassist Karl North yearned to escape the traditional Brit-pop scene happening in their native Liverpool. A year later, the duo met the Mission's Wayne Hussey, who offered to produce Rosetta Stone's first album. Shortly thereafter, Hussey pulled out of production duties and 1990's self-titled album was released without him. Several singles were put out through the '90s, and Rosetta Stone issued their first full-length, Adrenaline, in 1993. Foundation Stones and the Epitome EP also followed that same year. It was during this time that Rosetta Stone lead the naturally overlooked goth rock/darkwave movement into other musical outlets. Bands such as Nine Inch Nails and the Cult were getting brief national exposure. Drawing from musical influences such as Sisters of Mercy, Bauhaus, and the Cure, Rosetta Stone was delving into their own sonic seascape of brooding vocals and synth-inspired sounds. The band returned with Tyranny of Inaction in 1995, Hiding in Waiting in 1996, and Chemical Emissions in 1998, establishing themselves as one of Cleopatra's household names and carrying the gothic torch into the mainstream rock & roll circuit. The band broke up with the release of 2000's covers album Unerotica, but resurfaced late in the 2010s with a pair of LPs, Seems Like Forever and Cryptology. ~ MacKenzie Wilson, Rovi