There’s a lot that happens behind the scenes in a band’s life that nobody gets to see. It’s the blood, sweat, and tears of fine-tuning a sound that works; the hours, days, months, and years of constant rehearsals and writing; the overbearing tedium of traveling between shows in a cramped van; the soundchecks, late nights, and everything else that comes with touring; the penurious beginnings playing shows to two or fewer people—not to mention all the interviews that punctuate your days.
To that extent, it might seem like Winona Fighter have almost appeared out of nowhere. A cursory internet search won’t give you an exact date that the trio of vocalist Chloe “Coco” Kinnon, lead guitarist Dan Fuson, and bassist/producer Austin Luther formed, just that they seemed to have materialized out of thin air in 2022 with their debut EP Father Figure. The truth is that the band had actually been playing together as Coco for a number of years, putting in the work before making their real entrance. Then, about two months before Father Figure was released, the band came up with their actual name. Which explains perfectly why their debut album, My Apologies to the Chef, is so assured.
The record’s 14 songs balance infectiously catchy hooks and melodies with powerful (and powerfully delivered) lyrics that are personal, political, and perceptive in equal measure. And “You Look Like a Drunk Phoebe Bridgers”—inspired by what some random person once told Kinnon—is surely one of the best song titles of the year. Full of riotous sing-alongs that are as fun as they are profound, My Apologies is a stunning debut that’s all the more effective for the band taking their time to find themselves.
A few days ahead of its release, we sat down with Kinnon to get the low-down on the record, the band, and what the future hopefully holds. Stream the album, and read a snippet of our conversation below.
The old cliché is that you have your whole life to write your debut record. How are you feeling about yours now that it’s almost here?
It’s definitely bizarre, especially because we announced it back in October. It just feels crazy that the biggest thing we’ve ever done will be out there for everyone to hear. So there’s no pressure at all. No, there is a lot of pressure. And I’m my own worst enemy—I snoop on Reddit all the time, and it’s a blessing and a curse. There’s a lot of forums where people are like, “It’s my most anticipated record of 2025,” and I’m like, “That’s awesome! But, oh, the pressure…” But I think if you like Winona Fighter, you’re going to love this record, because it’s 100 percent a pure representation of the band. So it’s a little nervewracking!
You put so much of yourself into this record. Does that increase the stakes, because it’s so raw, personal, and visceral?
I think the thing that gives me more anxiety is that we’ve been doing this series on our social media pages where I’m giving a little insight to each song every day. I have to sit in front of the camera and be 100 percent honest about what these songs are about—so you’re opening yourself up to the public, and to people who are behind screens. But I think doing bold things like already releasing “I’m in the Market to Please No One,” which is about domestic violence, and “Johnny’s Dead,” which is about substance abuse, makes it feel like we’ve bared a lot of personal stuff already. How much worse can it get?
How important is it that people understand what these songs are about, as opposed to just going to a show and getting in the pit and dancing or moshing without thinking about the lyrics?
The thing with us is that there’s a lot of intention behind the lyrics. However, the music is just for that—to get people excited and moving and dancing. And even if I write a song about this subject, I’m fine if someone perceives it as something completely different. But I think that’s the beauty of music, and I think that’s the beauty of our music—even though they’re personal songs to me, I’d love for people to interpret them however they have an emotional response to them.
A lot of bands, when they release debut albums, don’t put previously issued tracks on that record, but you rerecorded three of them. Why are those songs so important to you?
The record is a collection of what we feel is our best work from the past two years, from Father Figure to when we finished the record. We chose what we thought was the best representation of us. And you know, 20 percent max of listeners are going to be people who are already fans. I think the whole goal with a debut LP is that the majority of listeners are people being texted about this record, like “Hey, have you heard this?” It’s mainly new ears and new listeners, and those are songs we adore and which represent us so well. They’re 100 percent us.
Do you have any idea if Phoebe Bridgers has heard “You Look Like a Drunk Phoebe Bridgers”?
I don’t know. When we were chatting with labels right after we released Father Figure, I did talk to Phoebe Bridgers’ label—not the label she runs, but the one she’s on. And they were like, “We’ll have to send it to Phoebe!” and I was like, “You don’t have to do that!” When you’re dating Bo Burnham, I would hope she has a good sense of humor. But I could also see her being, like, “People think I look like that girl? Harsh!” I don’t know. Maybe we’ll run into each other at the GRAMMYs one day or something.
