If It's Too Loud...

Photo by Brian Karlsson I first discovered They Are Gutting a Body of Water earlier this year at Something in the Way, and was blown away by the Philadelphia band's unique blend of shoegaze. They also released the excellent album LOTTO  back in October, which has been in heavy rotation here. I always prefer to see bands play their own shows, so when it was announced that TAGABOW were playing Arts at the Armory, I knew I had to check it out. TAGABOW have one of the more unique stage set ups. Instead of setting up on the venue's high stage at the front of the room, they were on a small stage in the center of the floor, just inches off the ground. It created a much more intimate setting than a normal concert, with a good portion of the audience being mere feet, if not inches, from the performers.  Shoegaze can be a very repetitive genre, but not the way TAGABOW does it. Instead of the standard loud/quiet/loud format, they do more of a beautiful/heavy/interesting/weird breakdown. ...

Artist : They Are Gutting a Body of Water Album : LOTTO Quick Thoughts : I was unsure how much I would like Lotto based on some of the stuff I had read, but when this turned out to be exactly the type of dirty, grungy shoegaze I love, well, this album quickly became a favorite. It's a short record, but one with basically no skips from beginning to end - "sour diesel" and "rl stine" are highlights, but if you generally love the stuff we highlight here, you'll love this. Songs of Note : "sour diesel," "trainers," "slo crostic," "violence iii," "herpim," "rl stine" Artist : bar italia Album : Some Like It Hot Quick Thoughts : I can't say for sure that this is a bit of a change of pace for bar italia, but the sort of polished twee-ish Britpop that feels current and nostalgic is amazing and worth your time this week. Between the high production values and great songwriting, don't miss ...

Photo by Brian Karlsson One thing the 2020's have provided are wildly new takes on shoegaze, and no one has put their own spin on the genre like They are Gutting a Body of Water. The Philadelphia band's latest single, "rl stine," is an explosion of sound, sometimes simply loud and others completely disjointed. It sweeps you up in a wave of fuzzy noise and then crashes you down into its devastating power. If heavy shoegaze is a current genre, "rl stine" destroys that very concept with volume and abrasiveness. There's a lot of crossover fandom between shoegaze and hardcore, and TAGABOW are the rare band that lands on both sides of that equation. Band leader Doug Dulgarian says of his band's latest single: “There is a guy who I see every day near my house. I always buy him a pack of Newport hundreds, knowing full well that he will trade it for crack. I wonder sometimes if it’s the addict in me, enabling the addict in him, or if I just fully understand h...

Photo by Brian Karlsson Philadelphia shoegaze heroes they are gutting a body of water (aka TAGABOW) are known for eschewing your standard shoegaze rules to create their own thrilling sound. Their latest single, "the chase," might be their most traditionally shoegaze song yet, but of course that's always relative. The new single is a heavy version of the genre, built more for moshing than chinstroking, but that wall of heavy sound and fuzz will still blast you back once "the chase" starts. Lyrics aren't typically the focus with this still of music, but the song features a gripping spoken word story of songwriter and guitarist Douglas Dulgarian's account of relapsing. TAGABOW are reinventing a decades old genre, and we're thrilled to be on this journey with them. Douglas Dulgarian says of his band's latest single: “It’s hard. In no way do I want to glorify drug use. I want to make it clear that attempts to escape yourself leave you yearning for a f...

Photo by Brian Karlsson We talk a lot about how much of modern music is without a genre, but no one exemplifies that quite like They are Gutting a Body of Water, aka TAGABOW. The band's new single, "trainers," is going to mostly be considered a heavy shoegaze song, but that barely scratches the surface of their sound. They've nailed the loud/quiet/loud thing perfectly, and the song starts off more as a slightly off-center indie rock song before the wall of noise and fuzz barrels over you. If that was the only sonic change up in the song, it would still be a great track, but TAGABOW also adds in interesting little samples and electronic noises after a killer guitar solo that defies everything we know about shoegaze. "trainers" is a good one that will demand multiple listens to make sure you've taken it all in. Singer Doug Dalgarian says the new single is  “... a vignette, a day in the life; desiring something wholesome while still grappling with the reali...

Photo by Brian Karlsson Philadelphia's TAGABOW (aka They are Gutting a Body of Water) were one of my favorite discoveries from this year's Something in the Way Festival. The band's latest single, "AMERICAN FOOD," is everything I loved from their performance. They're considered one of the new shoegaze bands, and while that's not incorrect, it also doesn't come close to explaining their genre ignoring sound. This new song has a guitar that is reminiscent of shoegaze, but the song is also much heavier. Plus, the song is filled with samples, electronic effects on vocals, and drums that sound electronic, as well. It's kinda shoegaze, but also hardcore, hip hop, and electronic music. "AMERICAN FOOD" is such a hodgepodge of sounds that it simply shouldn't work, but newfangled artists like TAGABOW somehow pull off these new and eclectic sounds perfectly. You can watch the video for "AMERICAN FOOD" below. The single is out now via a ...

Being a fan of live music, I love music festivals. It's a great way to see a bunch of bands all at once, from long time favorites I've seen multiple times to bands I've never gotten around to seeing to bands I've never heard of. Unfortunately, I live in New England, and music festivals tend to only happen a few months out of the year. When Run for Cover and The Bowery Presents announced Something in the Way, I immediately wanted to go. An all day, indoor, multiple stage festival happening right when winter starts sucking fully? Sign us up. Here are my highlights for the Sunday edition of Something in the Way! Mini Trees One thing I liked about the Sunday edition of Something in the Way was how it seemed to focus on hardcore/punk bands and shoegaze. I walked in towards the end of Portrayal of Guilt's set, which was quite heavy and screamy. The first full set I saw was Mini Trees, who are a self-described "sad dream pop" band. Mini Trees music is gorgeous. I...