BILLINGS — Some might suggest that goth is deader than dead. On Thursday evening in Billings, however, the shadows came to life.

Around 20 vendors, three bands, and a drag show gathered under the banner of the city’s first Goth Day — a celebration of eyeliner, fishnets, leather, and the community that continues to thrive in its blackest wardrobe.

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To organizers such as Madison Love-Tomme, goth is alive and evolving.

“What is home? … The American dream is not what it once was. I feel like now, the American dream is a mixed alt-girl with chunky boots and blue hair,” said Love-Tomme.

Born from the ashes of punk in the late 1970s, goth has long been a romantic scene — one defined by aesthetic devotion, outsider art and a love of the melancholic. In Billings, it has found kinship with another subculture: the renaissance fair.

“It’s not quite renaissance, but they asked, and we said sure," said Doug McIsaac, with Captain Scurvy's Black Dragon Pub, which hosted part of the event. "People that really get into goth, they really do the makeup, they really do the outfits. People that really do the ren-fest, really do the outfits. There’s some crossover there."

Beneath the layers of lace and platform boots, however, many say goth is more than an aesthetic. It is a response to the world around them.

“I grew up in a very conservative upbringing, let’s say," said Katie Harrison, a Goth Day organizer. "Goth culture for me definitely could be a direct slap in the face to that conservative culture that I did grow up in."

Though many of its members feel ousted by the mainstream, they have found a sense of home by going against the grain. Today’s goth — especially in places like Montana — looks a little different than it once did.

“I love, love, love the mixture of y’alternative–that country and that goth culture coming together is the most beautiful blend that Montana could see," said Love-Tomme. "Every goth girl needs a cowboy."