It was only a few decades ago that health practitioners’ guidance for LGBTQ+ people who wanted to have safe sex was a single sentence: “If you don’t want to have HIV, don’t have sex.”
Dissatisfied with the status quo, a resilient queer community looked inward for support and education, leading to the creation of formative (and sensual) short film Gay Men’s Guide to Safer Sex.
The 1992 flick –– helmed by David Lewis –– was pivotal in many ways, depicting Dr. Mike Youle discussing safe sex tips, developments in HIV research, and the unique struggles of being queer in the nineties. OK, yes, and a revolutionary amount of real gay sex. (What did you expect from the title?)
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In 1997, filmmaker Rob Falconer released a sequel with additional info and a new score. And as highlighted by a recent screening of his 2024 director’s cut in London, the movie’s themes and aesthetic remain as resonant as ever.
But aside from scintillating visuals and essential discussions, the 1992 art pic immediately struck a chord for another reason: an atmospheric and hypnotic techno soundtrack, crafted by British experimental band Coil.
Listen.
The sonically groundbreaking group, led by John Balance and his partner at the time Peter “Sleazy” Christopherson, is oft-forgotten in the annals of queer history.
Uncompromising in sounds, visuals, and spirit, Coil may better fit in a pretentious playlist of vintage indie-gems than alongside their glossy gay contemporaries like Elton John and George Michael. Nonetheless, AllMusic dubbed them “highly regarded in dance and industrial circles.”
Furthermore, soundtracking Gay Men’s Guide was hardly their only act of defiance in an era when homophobia ran rampant, particularly in Britain.
It was Coil’s devastating cover of “Tainted Love” (recorded “as a response to the AIDS epidemic ravaging the world”) that earned them widespread recognition in 1985.
In its heartbreaking and haunting visual, the band depicted a young man battling the disease with unflinching honesty and anger. The first-of-its-kind video would later be purchased by The Museum of Modern Art for its collection on films about AIDS.
That being said, the band’s fascination with occult, drugs, and alchemy wasn’t immediately resonant with the queer community at-large. But that wasn’t their goal, either.
After all, the ’80s gay scene was “pretty naff as a rule,” says Balance and Christopherson’s friend Paul Hampshire.
“I don’t think [they] would be naive that they would expect the gay community and the gay press to understand what they were doing,” he told Spin in 2021. “[Coil’s music was] not going to get played in gay pubs and bars.”
Still, there’s an unmistakable queer sensibility to the band’s dark and psychedelic discography. One that feels even more recognizable today.
“National newspapers would openly deride gay people using slurs as front page headlines. And all in the face of AIDS, when we were seeing friends and lovers die,” Coil band member Stephen Thrower told Spin.
“We were never backwards in coming forward about this. The realization that you were so profoundly at odds with the wider culture gave your purposeful disconnection a real edge of loathing.”
While Coil released an overwhelming amount of music in their two-decade tenure, the band “ceased to exist” following the tragic death of Balance, who died in 2004 after falling from a balcony at his home. In 2010, Christopherson passed in his sleep at age 55.
Nowadays, the rule-breaking and trailblazing Gay Man’s Guide composers would likely be happy to know their transcendent soundtrack is still being talked about. The tunes serve as both an inspiration to other musicians and a nostalgic reminder of how gay life in the ’90s felt –– and sounded.
It’s an energy that lives on in the nostalgic and house-infused tracks by electro-pop crew Angel in the 1997 cut, as well as the vibrant tunes by Tall Houses and Nuw Idol that are new to the 2024 version.
We only wish Balance and Christopherson were here to see it.
Watch the trailer for Gay Man’s Guide to Safer Sex ’97, featuring music by Tall Houses, below.
Related*
Long live queer nightlife: How the closing of gay bars sparked a revolution
The following is an excerpt from “Long Live Queer Nightlife: How the Closing of Gay Bars Sparked a Revolution” by Amin Ghaziani, available now from Princeton University Press.
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