by Charlie Bailey (@hectic_skeptic)
Emerging from the rubble, the doom and gloom of crumbling society, AI takeover, and the technological peak pushing out passive serotonin-searching zombies comes LOTTO. Philadelphia’s underground savants they are gutting a body of water tackle our current dystopia in an unencumbered analog masterpiece with some of the band’s most compelling conceptual work, writing, and intensely memorable riffs. Starting as the solo project of vocalist/guitarist Doug Dulgarian before blossoming into a full four piece, TAGABOW have been the defining force in the modern shoegaze resurgence with their signature DIY genre-blending that scratches into electronic, jungle, and whatever other alien samples they can get their hands on. LOTTO is a clear evolution for the band; a departure into the personal, the hard to talk about, the human. Without leaning on computers or distilled digital perfection, TAGABOW plunge into the aural atmosphere of recording collectively and live on tape, letting the grit and grime of lived experience shine through.
TAGABOW have shaped the landscape of modern indie rock not just through their sound, but through Dulgarian’s label Julia’s War Records. Let me put it this way: Dulgarian and Julia’s War are my Ian McKaye and Dischord Records. LOTTO is a huge jump for the band, marking their first release since signing to ATO Records which boasts names such as King Gizzard and My Morning Jacket.
LOTTO is still TAGABOW, LOTTO is still shoegaze, LOTTO is still DIY.
LOTTO also comes to grips with the Neuromancer-esque sci-fi world that TAGABOW has crafted over the years, pulling back the curtain and reckoning with the fact that we’re not so far removed from fiction in 2025. Opening with the menacingly heavy riff of “the chase” the tone is set. Dulgarian spills his guts in a cleanly exposed voice-over over describing New Year’s Day 2025; a fentanyl withdrawal and the realization that life is a continual cycle of starting over.
Riffs run rampant and live like a parasite in your head in guitar focused tracks like “violence iii” and “slo crostic.” In some of the most confessional and demanding lyrics we’ve seen from TAGABOW, we also get insanely memorable hooks from “baeside k” and “american food,” the latter a foray into Alex G infused bedroom pop done with a particularly germane tone. Traversing a newfound spirited approach into the tangible, LOTTO is jam-packed with certified shoegaze bangers.
They are gutting a body of water have grinded out an honest, human record, free of convenient technological smoothness and instead filled with the intensity of life-worn soul. LOTTO tickles the glassy surface of your brain and carves out spiraling paths of catastrophe, hope, and ecstasy; a simultaneous catharsis and inward inquiry that leaves you with more questions than answers. One thing is certain: there is no miracle cure for life, and that golden shining idol of a winning lottery ticket won’t save you.