NYC's Shower Curtain share insomnia-induced single "benadryl man"
“Nails certain things about ’90s indie rock that plenty of present-day revivalists can’t quite capture.”
- STEREOGUM
“Promises an album packed with wistful reminiscing of indie rock’s storied past.”
- PASTE MAGAZINE
“Invoking both shoegaze vibes as well as memories of The Cranberries’ less pop-driven efforts”
- CONSEQUENCE
“The next to burst out of the scene will undoubtedly be Shower Curtain.”
- NOTION
Shower Curtain, the four-piece NYC band led by Brazilian-American artist Victoria Winter, are excited to share their new single “benadryl man.” A follow-up to lead single “wish u well” and its official music video, today’s song is an exploration of insomnia-induced nightmares soundtracked by driving string arrangements and staticky distortion. Discordant production evokes haunted memories and scary visions, reminiscent of iconic horror movie scores. This marks the second single from their debut album words from a wishing well due out Friday, October 18 via Angel Tapes/Fire Talk Records.
LISTEN TO “BENADRYL MAN
WATCH THE OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO FOR “BENADRYL MAN”
“‘benadryl man’ tells the story of my issues with sleeping and anxiety,” says bandleader Victoria Winter. “I see a figure sitting on my couch and it prevents me from entering a stage of peace, moreover not feeling safe in my home. The instrumentals are a little sinister and creepy, and I always envisioned having strings on this.”
On the production of the song, co-producer and guitarist Ethan Williams (Punchlove) says, “We brought in our friends Zach Mezzo (Catcher) and Wil Ren (Wince) who laid down violin and cello, respectively. We overdubbed them playing slightly different parts, improvised based on our (very vague) directions, twice to make it feel like a string quartet. Some of my favorite moments are Zach playing electric violin through guitar effects to create this creepy, otherworldly gliding sound you hear in the verse and the “quartet” doing Hitchcock-style screeches in the end-chorus.
Also premiering today, the official music video for the track features artwork by artist Kati Kirsch and direction from Winter and bassist Cody Hudgins (Crate). Viewers enter into a digital world of angels, bunnies and trinkets, inspired by viral Calico Critter TikTok videos that depict bunnies with real-world dilemmas. Brazilian/Chilean designer quiet sports brought additional textures and backgrounds into the mix, adding to the otherworldly feeling of the video. On the inspiration behind the video, Winter says, “A couple of months ago I went to an exhibition in Bushwick and saw an installation piece by artist Kati Kirsch. She had spray-painted bunnies that were hopping around the gallery. I knew I really wanted to use that piece in a video because it really spoke to me - the bunnies felt like they had their own personality and a life of their own which I loved.”
The announcement of words from a wishing well was heralded by Shower Curtain’s first song of the year, “wish u well.” Arriving with a music video directed by Trevor Scholl and starring Brenna Gonzalez from Julia’s War band Lola Star, the track served as an ode to the early bedroom pop beginnings of the project whilst showcasing how the band has grown leaps and bounds through break-up musings and layered guitar riffs.
LISTEN TO “WISH U WELL”
WATCH THE OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO FOR “WISH U WELL”
PRE-ORDER WORDS FROM A WISHING WELL
The band’s upcoming debut follows their 2021 EP Something Instead and 2023 singles; “meus passos,” with Brazilian group terraplana, and “edgar,” the final track of words from a wishing well that Stereogum called “a lingering blast of poignant shoegaze” and Paste Magazine praised as “a gorgeous, reflective arc of survival and loss and hope.”
Last year’s singles represented a significant milestone in the band's journey, signaling a bold artistic evolution for the band from bedroom pop to sludgy rock after a two-year hiatus. Beginning as Victoria’s solo project, the band has found a home within Brooklyn’s emerging slowcore and shoegaze scene, adding members Cody Hudgins (Crate) on bass, Ethan Williams (Punchlove) on guitar, and Sean Terrell (Fasting) on drums.
Shower Curtain was on tour last month with Bleary Eyed and Flooding, following a run of dates with fellow New York band Joyer. This month, they’ll play a hometown show with Winter at scene go-to Baby’s All Right. More dates will be announced soon.
SHOWER CURTAIN LIVE
SEPTEMBER
23 - Baby’s All Right - Brooklyn, NY *
* - w/ Winter
SHOWER CURTAIN
WORDS FROM A WISHING WELL
ANGEL TAPES / FIRE TALK RECORDS
Release Date: October 18, 2024
1. benadryl man
2. wish u well
3. take me home
4. you’re like me
5. tell u (interlude)
6. bedbugs
7. starpower
8. put me on a shelf
9. edgar
words from a wishing well is the debut record from Shower Curtain, the New York quartet fronted by Brazilian-American artist Victoria Winter (vocals/guitar), alongside Ethan Williams (guitar/vocals), Sean Terrell (drums), and Cody Hudgins (bass). Self-produced by Winter and Williams, words from a wishing well sketches early adulthood experiences in swirling layers of guitars. Winter wrote its tracks across her first few years of living in New York City, and they exist within a conversation between one’s own intuition and that of the universe. Channeling the sludgy distortion of 90s shoegaze and grunge, words from a wishing well establishes Shower Curtain as a standout in the city’s latest crop of bands.
Lead single “wish u well” offers a connecting thread into words from a wishing well, combining the pop tendencies of early Shower Curtain music with heavier production. One of the last songs written for words from a wishing well, Winter and Williams crafted “wish u well” across a pair of whirlwind sessions in the final days of tracking. “tell u (interlude)” emerges from these same sessions, and similarly pulls from Winter’s adolescence. Inspired by the Brazilian music she grew up with, the largely electronic interlude demonstrates the breadth of Shower Curtain’s forward-thinking alt-rock.
In addition to Winter and Williams, Shower Curtain is anchored by drummer Sean Terrell and bassist Cody Hudgins. Throughout words from a wishing well, guitars and vocal melodies co-exist alongside a textured blend of moments heavy and soft. “Bedbugs” turns up the fuzz as Winter lists obsessive patterns atop Terrell’s breakneck percussion: “Tapping, hiding, facing, searching, feel your hairs calling me out.” Album centerpiece, “You’re Like Me,” probes cycles of hurt between walls of distortion, and puts Shower Curtain’s dynamic approach to rock on full display.
Sinister opener, “benadryl man,” explores the struggle to feel safe in your own home, having trouble sleeping in a place not yet yours. Its screeching strings — performed by Catcher’s Zach Mezzo (violin) and Wince’s Wil Ren (cello) — are improvised and overdubbed, forming a makeshift quartet fit to score any case of sleep paralysis. “Everytime I go to bed // there’s a man sitting on the edge // of my velvet purple couch,” Winter sings, injecting metaphor into her real-life nightmares. “He’s hanging out when I’m not around.” This anxiety extends throughout words from a wishing well, and takes different shapes across tracks informed by grief, envy, love and lust.
“If one wishes into a wishing well, I’d like to believe that there is a reason why that wish would or wouldn’t come true,” Winter says of the album’s title, which reflects her search for spiritual guidance in life and music. “‘words from a wishing well’ speaks to the return of that wish from the universe.”
CONNECT WITH SHOWER CURTAIN:
