NICOTINE

WINTER × EYEDRESS

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Excerpt Cards

Pull-quote cards from the Winter & Eyedress "nicotine" feature — styled in the cigarette pack aesthetic.

9.5/ 10

IssueRomantix Mixtape

DateSeptember 2026

Cards14 Excerpts

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Track Review

A Farewell Letter Set to Tape Echo

The track opens with Winter's characteristic tape-warped guitar tone before Vicuña's voice enters like a second consciousness surfacing through the mix. Production by Joo Joo Ashworth is appropriately hazy: icy breakbeats, swirling reverb tails, and low-end warmth that recalls the trip-hop textures of Portishead and Massive Attack as much as it does the coastal dream-pop of Beach House.

"I initially wrote this song as a farewell to nicotine, which also inspired the music video." — Samira Winter

PM · 01 / 14

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The Collaboration

Two Voices, A Decade in the Making

For years, Winter and Eyedress orbited each other within Los Angeles' tightly knit DIY scene. They shared stages, mutual collaborators, and a sonic sensibility rooted in lo-fi intimacy. But it wasn't until Winter was deep in the sessions for Romantix Mixtape that the timing finally aligned. The result is a track that feels less like a feature and more like a conversation between two artists who've been waiting a decade to finish each other's sentences.

"Idris was the only person I could hear on it. His voice exists in this register that's somehow both distant and immediate."

PM · 02 / 14

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Who Is Winter?

The Brazilian-American Voice Behind the Dream-Pop Underground

Born in Curitiba, Brazil — a city she has called "the Seattle of Brazil" for its rain-soaked, introspective atmosphere — Winter grew up straddling two cultures. She relocated to Los Angeles in 2013, where she formed the band Winter. Her 2025 full-length Adult Romantix on Winspear was praised by The FADER, Paste, NPR, KEXP, and Stereogum, cementing her transition from bedroom-pop ingénue to serious songwriter.

Her lyrics are specific, her melodies are deliberate, and her voice, even at its most effects-soaked, carries an emotional directness that cuts through the haze.

PM · 03 / 14

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Who Is Eyedress?

From Manila to Silver Lake

Idris Ennolandy Vicuña, born May 28, 1990 in Manila, Philippines, started making beats on his laptop at 20. After gaining a following from making beats, a collaboration with Filipino singer Skint Eastwood earned him a record deal with Abeano Records, a subsidiary of XL Recordings. Singles from Let's Skip to the Wedding (2020) — "Jealous" and "Romantic Lover" — went viral on TikTok, soundtracking millions of videos and becoming anthems of the pandemic-era indie revival.

"Jealous" was certified 2× Platinum in the US — a remarkable achievement for an artist who started making beats in a Manila bedroom.

PM · 04 / 14

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The EP

Romantix Mixtape: A Collaborative Statement

Romantix Mixtape is a six-track collection built from the same world as Adult Romantix, including reimagined songs, reworked demo versions, b-side tracks, and never-before-heard material. The presence of Eyedress, Peel Dream Magazine, and Soccer Mommy signals Winter is building a collaborative network at the center of a dream-pop renaissance. These aren't transactional features — each collaboration stems from genuine creative relationships and shared sensibilities.

A limited-edition red cassette (200 copies) is available via Winspear.

PM · 05 / 14

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Cultural Moment

Why This Track Defines 2026's Indie Underground

The indie landscape of 2026 is fragmented. Listeners want depth, longevity, and authenticity. Winter and Eyedress both mean it. Neither arrived through algorithm or opportunism — they arrived through a decade of parallel evolution. "nicotine" is that moment of convergence. It's a song about letting go of something you love, sung by two people who know exactly what that costs.

That's the kind of song that doesn't just chart. It endures.

PM · 06 / 14

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Studio Sessions

How "nicotine" Came Together

Winter had written "nicotine" as a solo track during the Adult Romantix sessions. The song — a bittersweet meditation on addiction, departure, and the things we hold onto long after they stop serving us — felt complete but unfinished. It needed a second voice. Not a feature in the traditional sense, but a presence — someone who could inhabit the song's emotional space without disrupting its fragile equilibrium.

The sessions took place at Joo Joo Ashworth's studio in Los Angeles over two days. Eyedress recorded his parts in a single take.

PM · 07 / 14

Excerpt 08

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Inside the Sound

Deconstructing "nicotine"

The guitar tone is worth dwelling on. Winter processes her guitar through a tape echo — an analog effect that degrades the signal with each repeat, creating a sound that feels both warm and decaying. It's the sonic equivalent of a fading photograph: the image is still there, but the edges are soft, the colors muted. This aesthetic serves the song's thematic core: the idea of something you love that's slowly killing you, captured in a sound that's slowly dissolving.

The song is built on three foundational layers: tape-warped guitar, a breakbeat-inspired drum pattern, and the vocal interplay between Winter and Eyedress.

PM · 08 / 14

Excerpt 09

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Eyedress's Vocal

A Murmur So Close to the Mic

Eyedress's vocal enters at the one-minute mark. His voice is mixed low — not buried, but present, like a thought that surfaces unbidden. He doesn't so much sing his lines as exhale them. The effect is disarming. Where Winter's vocal is melodic and structured, Vicuña's is free-form and conversational. Together, they create a tension that mirrors the song's subject matter.

The push and pull of addiction, the way a habit becomes a companion, the way saying goodbye to something harmful still feels like loss.

PM · 09 / 14

Excerpt 10

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The Production

Joo Joo Ashworth's Signature Sound

Ashworth — a fixture of the LA DIY scene — has developed a signature sound that bridges the gap between lo-fi intimacy and studio clarity. His work on "nicotine" is defined by restraint. There's no unnecessary polish, no over-compression, no artificial width. Every element sits exactly where it should. The drums hit hard but feel close, like they're in the room with you.

The vocals — both Winter's and Eyedress's — are presented with a transparency that makes the emotional weight of the lyrics impossible to escape.

PM · 10 / 14

Excerpt 11

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Music Video

Music Video as Confessional

The music video, directed by bee eyes and edited by Eyedress himself, is as much a part of the song's emotional architecture as the music itself. Shot on what appears to be a combination of digital and Super 8 film, the video is a collage of intimate, flash-lit moments — Winter smoking, laughing, looking away from the camera — interspersed with blurred, dreamlike sequences that feel like memories surfacing and dissolving.

There's a deliberate rawness to the footage. Nothing is lit beautifully. Nothing is staged. The aesthetic is closer to a home movie than a music video.

PM · 11 / 14

Excerpt 12

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The Mac DeMarco Connection

Why This Matters

Mac DeMarco defined the 2010s bedroom-pop aesthetic. Eyedress has collaborated with Mac DeMarco directly — releasing two singles, "The Dark Prince" and "My Simple Jeep." Winter's visual and sonic identity exists in the same universe. But where DeMarco built on jangly charm and Eyedress on dusky atmosphere, Winter brings what the scene often lacks: emotional depth that doesn't flinch.

Eyedress brings the atmosphere; Winter brings the gravity. The result is both effortless and essential.

PM · 12 / 14

Excerpt 13

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Dream-Pop Renaissance

The Broader Picture

Dream-pop and shoegaze — genres that were once niche concerns of indie labels and college radio — have experienced a remarkable resurgence in the mid-2020s. The reasons are complex: a cultural pendulum swing away from maximalist pop production, a renewed appetite for emotional honesty in music, and the simple fact that the artists who emerged from the 2010s bedroom-pop wave have grown into their craft.

Winter and Eyedress are at the center of this shift. They represent a generation of artists making music that exists outside of trend cycles.

PM · 13 / 14

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The Winspear Connection

Why Label Choice Matters

Winter's move to Winspear Records for Adult Romantix and Romantix Mixtape is worth noting. Winspear — a boutique label known for its curated roster of dream-pop, shoegaze, and indie rock — has positioned itself as a home for artists who prioritize craft over virality. In an industry where major labels increasingly dictate creative direction through data-driven A&R, Winspear's artist-first approach feels like a quiet rebellion.

The shared label infrastructure has likely facilitated the organic creative connection that led to "nicotine."

PM · 14 / 14

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Romantix Mixtape · September 2026 · Rated 9.5