Subterranean wins the LOTTO with They Are Gutting A Body Of Water

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Indie rockers Guitar opened the show with their delightful brand of slacker rock. Hailing from Portland, the band recently released their latest album We’re Headed to the Lake in October. A little The Presidents Of The United States-ish, it’s incredibly refreshing to hear a band like Guitar channel a kind of 90’s alt-rock influence that few else are trying to capture. They sound like something your cooler older brother would be obsessed with, they could easily soundtrack a pro-skater game. 

Philly band Fib plays both sides of the coin extremely well. Comprised of Gage Nelson, Damien Nicholson, Logan Adam, and Charlie Libby Watt. The group released their debut record Heavy Lifting this year. They expertly balance catchy melodic indie rock with their more punk influences. Their frantic guitar riffs are cut with equally sweet vocals. 

There’s a tangible energy as the crowd clears a circle for the band they’ve been waiting all night to see, They Are Gutting A Body Of Water (TAGABOW).The band chooses to perform in the center of the floor, facing each other as opposed to the crowd. It’s become their staple. TAGABOW is made up of songwriter and guitarist Douglas Dulgarian, bassist Emily Lofing, guitarist PJ Carroll, and drummer Ben Opatut. Formed by Dulgarian in 2016, the band has amassed a bit of a cult-like underground following over the years. They seem to be perpetually innovating shoegaze as we know it, and have influenced many of their contemporaries.

I think anything that disrupts the norm, is undeniably interesting. TAGABOW isn’t just switching up the norm in terms of their unique staging. Their music itself is disruptive, blending shoegaze and electronica, jungle and distortion. Doug plays drum beats in between songs and engages the audience in a way that I feel like you often don’t get. It interrupts the monotony and cultivates experience of constant motion. There’s no awkward pause as they tune their instruments, instead you’re constantly waiting for the transition from the beat into the next song. The set builds and builds through songs like “baeside k” and intermittent quips like Dulgarian asking the crowd if he should freestyle, laughing off the cheers with, “You guys just wanna see me embarrass myself.”. The set finally crests with “the chase”. Beyond it being an undeniably great shoegaze track, it’s likely one of the most emotive songs from the band’s latest album, LOTTO. It recounts Dulgarian’s struggle with addiction in a stark but beautifully honest way. The band finishes the track with a gut punch, and leaves it all behind.