Shortly after Shower Breakfast put out their dreamy first single, “Marmalade,” in 2023 and played a couple of house shows, the track was added to one of Spotify’s official playlists. It’s the kind of small but meaningful break that artists and their teams often earn only after learning how to game the algorithm — but even with dedicated effort, it still takes luck.
“It’s funny because you’re supposed to like pitch your song to Spotify, but we didn’t do that. So, we kind of just saw it appeared, and I’m like, ‘is this fake?’ Aly D’Souza recalls.
D’Souza, the band’s vocalist and guitarist, started Shower Breakfast with fellow guitarist Spencer Fields after the two had decided to take what they’d developed in solo projects and with friends to meld it into what has since become one of Sacramento’s most enchanting indie pop bands to date.
Rounded out by Carisse Geronimo on bass and Gabriel Leria on drums, the four-piece was met with open arms. “There has been a lot of support. I wasn’t expecting people to just message us on Instagram and be like, ‘hey, can you play this show?’ or say ‘we can do a music video for you,’ D’Souza says. “Sac Indie Records offered to put our album on cassettes. We found so much support because people were just very open and very nice to us. It feels almost unreal.”
Since releasing their debut album, dilute, in September 2025, the band has been booked and busy playing some of the city’s smaller venues, but largely finding their community among those who host and attend DIY house shows.
“One of the things that we really enjoy is a nice DIY show because it’s such a collaborative thing. They’re people literally just coming together and putting on a show for people to enjoy. And it’s like something that, when it pays off, you’re just like, ‘I’m proud of that. I helped put that together,” D’Souza says.
For AAPI Heritage Month, Shower Breakfast played alongside shoe gaze and noise rock bands with members spanning the spectrum of diverse ethnicities under the Asian American and Pacific Islander umbrella. The gig, a house show with just a $10 cover, included food pop ups, art displays and a tattoo artist offering flash designs.
“That show in particular was very special because I am Asian American, and I do walk into rooms where I’m the only Asian person or I’m the only person of color, and so when we did that AAPI show it just made me feel so much more held and supported,” D’Souza says.
Despite having just released a full-length album at the end of last year, the band is bursting with creative energy — constantly writing and fine-tuning — and is already eyeing the release of a new EP.
“When I’m creating, I’m learning more about myself and learning how to be a better person than I was the day before,” D’Souza says, noting that creativity goes well beyond putting fingers to frets, brush to canvas or pen to paper.
“Creating is for everyone. I think people have this idea that it’s only for certain people, but I think we were made to create — that it’s super important that we do because it’s part of who we are, whether we realize it or not,” she continues. “Even journaling and just following a train of thought is creating.”
For D’Souza and company, creating is the easy part. It’s the business side of things, doing the tasks of a manager and booking shows, that’s far more challenging. But perhaps that’s an avenue for creativity for those who want to support local artists but aren’t themselves musically inclined can step in, use their skills and provide the kind of infrastructural support small bands lack.
“Oh my gosh, that would be awesome,” D’Souza says of the prospect. “That’s really the thing that we need.”
