Smith began sporting his trademark physical appearance of a pale complexion, smeared red lipstick, black eye-liner, a dishevelled nest of wiry black hair, all-black clothes, and brothel creeper shoes in the early 1980s, around the same time as the goth subculture took off. However, he denies any credit for this trend and claims it is a coincidence that the styles are similar, stating that he wore makeup since he was young and stating that "it's so pitiful when 'goth' is still tagged onto the name of The Cure". The sombre mood of early albums, combined with Smith's on-stage persona, cemented the band's "gothic" image. The band's aesthetic went from gloomy to psychedelic beginning with "The Top".