They Are Gutting A Body Of Water cancel tour after cancer diagnosis
The shoegaze band’s frontman, Doug Dulgarian, announced his cancer diagnosis and the tour cancelation on social media Tuesday. However, the band is hoping to still play Dec. 18 at Union Transfer with Jim E. Brown and Big Nick.
One of the Philly music scene’s brightest rising stars has suffered a major setback after some recent big victories. Shoegaze act They Are Gutting A Body Of Water Tuesday said their upcoming tour has been canceled due to frontman Doug Dulgarian’s cancer diagnosis.
“I was diagnosed with cancer last Friday, same day we put out [KOOL FAITH/LOOSIES II],” Dulgarian said in a social media post.
The vocalist/guitarist said he begins treatment next week and that their tour, which was set to kick off Oct. 29 in Baltimore, must be canceled. However, Dulgarian has a positive outlook on his treatment plan, and said they are planning to play the final three shows of the tour: two nights in Brooklyn and their Dec. 18 Union Transfer gig with Big Nick and Jim E. Brown.
“I love nothing more than making music and seeing my friends & it breaks my heart to cancel a tour,” he said. “We’re gonna keep the Philly & NYC dates on the schedule in hopes I’ll be able to do it.”
KOOL FAITH/LOOSIES II, a 29-track album that features many of TAGABOW’s friends, is the band’s seventh full release.
“The fact that I got the diagnosis the same day we put out a massive compilation featuring as many friends as I could muster, well that symbolism that is not lost on me,” he said.
On top of the album’s release, TAGABOW just teamed up with Fender for their The One. For New York. concert film, the footage of which dropped the day before Dulgarian’s announcement.
“Bolstered by blitzkrieg guitars, earworm melodies and the frenetic, pounding assault of their concussive rhythm section, TAGABOW features harrowing-if-ultimately-life-affirming tales of addiction, relapse and redemption pulled straight from the real-life struggles of frontman and principal songwriter Douglas Dulgarian,” Fender said of the band, describing their performance as a “master class in anthemic catharsis and ecstatic demolition.”
TAGABOW this summer joined former Philadelphia Eagles defensive end and outside linebacker Connor Barwin‘s Make The World Better Concert Weekend, sharing the stage with Kurt Vile and Twisted Teens.
“I hope what I can walk away with from this situation is gratitude for another experience,” Dulgarian said. “I’ve been blessed to experience a full spectrum of emotion in my life. Very good, very bad, a whole lot in between.”
Dulgarian does not want pity, saying if he believes he deserves pity from others, he would feel bad for himself, “and that’s the beginning of giving up.”
A GoFundMe campaign has been launched to support the band and Dulgarian as they navigate an uncertain time.
“This has left Douglas and the band in a financially precarious spot,” TAGABOW manager and campaign organizer Andrew Baker wrote on the page. “Douglas has already paid for thousands of dollars of medical bills out of pocket to get the cancer diagnosis, there are upfront tour related costs that can’t be reimbursed, and the profits from the tour was supposed to be the band’s income for the rest of the year. We are praying for a speedy recovery and asking for donations at this time to cover medical bills and living expenses while he navigates cancer treatment and recovery.”
TAGABOW’s music is available for purchase on the Julia’s War Recordings website and bandcamp, where merchandise is also on sale.
“I’m scared and unsure of how this will all go,” Dulgarian said. “The prognosis seems to be pretty good. That’s cool.”
