There’s something thrilling about the mixtape. From the Stones’ proto-template Exile on Main Street to FKA Twigs’ Caprisongs to Cindy Lee’s “adjacent” Diamond Jubilee to Klein’s Sleep with a Cane – these albums capture a spontaneity, expansiveness, and sense of experimentation that might not show up on a more conventional or studio-centric LP.
Add to the list the new release from Philadelphia-based They Are Gutting a Body of Water, the 29-track Kool Faith / Loosies II. Teaming up with a long list of guest artists – many working in the Philly indie scene – the band venture into various genres and subgenres, displaying collaborative eagerness and versatility. If previous work has cumulatively compressed the band’s sound, Kool Faith serves as a reminder that TAGABOW possess a complex DNA and are motivated by diverse aesthetic impulses.
Unsurprisingly, part of Kool Faith’s mission is to further broadcast TAGABOW’s brand of shoegaze, best represented via 2025’s Lotto. On “kool marder”, Cashier’s Kylie Gaspard navigates a bubblegum-pop melody, her voice soaked in waves of distortion. “the rook” is a synth-and-guitar riff-driven track that oozes theatricality. “charter spec”, performed with Horse Jumper of Love, moves between shimmery, flange-y verses and super-grungy choruses, while “illusion hue” brings to mind Nirvana circa “Aneurysm” crossed with reunion-era My Bloody Valentine. Greg Mendez’s soft vocals on “God’s little clown” are spattered by distorted guitars, classic fuzz meets a certain delicacy à la Alex G.
Prior to Lotto – notably on 2022’s Lucky Styles – TAGABOW experimented considerably with electronics and digital formats. “paint the bride” reasserts the band’s intrigue with manipulated sounds (programmed beats and ambient synths), conjuring Codeine or Deathcrash, albeit with grittier guitars and a jankier tempo. With “rodman”, featuring Hotline TNT, the band use a similar approach, though noisy guitars provide a rock grounding. As with “kool marder”, a sugary melody bobs in a sea of fuzz.
One of the set’s primary successes is the way it fleshes out TAGABOW’s connection to hip-hop. “yellow dolphins”, limelighting Cooking, FearDorian, Izzy Camina, and RXKNephew (who released his own memorable mixtape, Crack Therapy 3, in 2020), is a weedy rap track replete with understated riffs and synthy accents. “Stone Driveway”, with dupontpavilion and Beat Fella, includes samples and glitchy flourishes filtered through a DIY casualness. “happy as a favor” is a modish spit-and-clangor track, Tony Bontana’s voice undergirded by trebly percussion. Midway, a serrated guitar blasts into the field, bringing to mind Paris, Texas’s hip-hop and grunge amalgams. Footworker DJ Manny takes center stage on “5dime”. With its quirky beats, the track occurs as a hyperpop palimpsest stripped down to essentials.
Other tracks that accentuate TAGABOW’s skillsets while also nudging them toward fresh territory include “heart knower”, one of two pieces highlighting Full Body 2. A draggy guitar cuts through the sonic field like a string of barbed wire coated with aloe. The resulting haze is refreshingly paradoxical – soothing and agitating. Spirit of the Beehive take the lead on “my Happening”, the track illustrating tendencies shared by both bands, though Beehive seem to push TAGABOW in a dreamier and slowcore direction: rhythms that could turn arrhythmic at any moment, opaque atmospherics that inch toward darkness, downcast vocals that convey grief and a quiet defiance.
So it goes. The shambolic yet frequently invigorating Kool Faith – co-released by ATO and the Philly-based, Doug Dulgarian-founded Julia’s War – will certainly appeal to fans, supplementing the band’s strategically curated work. That said, the project stands on its own, too, spotlighting TAGABOW’s eclecticism and smoldering ambition, as well as their appreciation for community.
