Friends Launch Fundraiser for They Are Gutting a Body of Water Guitarist Douglas Dulgarian’s Cancer Treatment

A day after Douglas Dulgarian, the vocalist and guitarist for the shoegaze band They Are Gutting a Body of Water, announced that doctors had diagnosed him with cancer, his friends launched a GoFundMe to cover his treatment and income lost due to canceled tour dates. At the time of publication, the fundraiser had surpassed its $60,000 goal with contributions from more than 1,300 donors.

The organizers said they hope Dulgarian will have recovered by the band’s December shows in New York City and Philadelphia, although the situation remains uncertain. They said the diagnosis has left Dulgarian and the band in a financially precarious position. Dulgarian has already paid thousands of dollars in medical bills out of pocket to obtain the diagnosis, while the band faces unrecoverable upfront tour expenses. The tour’s profits were expected to provide the band’s income for the rest of the year. The organizers are asking for donations to cover medical bills and living expenses as Dulgarian undergoes treatment and recovery, and said they are praying for a swift recovery.

On Tuesday, Dulgarian shared his diagnosis on Instagram. He said he was diagnosed with cancer last Friday, the same day the band released Kool Faith, a compilation mixtape. “Crazy day, every possible emotion, lmao,” he wrote. “We obviously can’t do the tour, as I need to get this figured out. I have treatment in a couple weeks.”

Dulgarian said he had a feeling the situation would work out. He described having been through many difficult experiences during his “crazy and, at this point, relatively long life” and said he has learned to keep moving forward when facing adversity.

He explained that he shared his diagnosis not to seek pity, but to inform friends and fans about his condition and why the band would miss the tour. “There are many people with much worse problems, and my life has been so infinitely blessed and privileged. I never lose sight of that,” he wrote.

Rolling Stone awarded the band’s most recent album, Lotto, four out of five stars. “Dulgarian, the son of a dirt-track racer, epitomizes the restlessly innovative spirit that keeps shoegaze so vital,” critic Rob Sheffield wrote.

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