Winona Fighter to Launch North American Tour Starting January 21

Nashville punk trio Winona Fighter has announced their sophomore album, Brutal & Extremely Underrated, set for release on January 22, 2027 via Rise Records. The announcement follows the band's 2025 debut album My Apologies to The Chef, which the band says established them as a rising force in the alternative/punk world.

Brutal & Extremely Underrated is available for pre-order/pre-save now at WinonaFighter.lnk.to/BAEU.

Guitarist Dan Fuson said: 'On this record I think we as a band gelled more than we ever have and made space for each other while still elevating each song. The goal of serving each tune was always in mind and we hit the fricking bullseye.'

'I f***ing love this record and I love that I got to make it (once again) DIY in a garage with my two favorite people,' added frontwoman Coco Kinnon. 'I especially love that we get to give our fans and new listeners something real in a world of slop.'

Bassist Austin Luther added: 'In true Winona Fighter fashion, we put our blood, sweat, and tears into the making of this record. Our goal was to evolve as a band while still delivering the hard hitting and melodic songs we love to make. Please enjoy at full volume.'

Alongside the album announcement, the band has released a new single titled 'LEECH.' The accompanying music video was directed by Hannah Hall and embodies the song's feelings of apprehension. It can be viewed here:

'LEECH' marks the second song released from the upcoming record, following the earlier single 'BOMBS AWAY.' Winona Fighter tapped self-taught artist Glen Martin Taylor to create the cover art for Brutal & Extremely Underrated, work that explores themes of transformation and healing through fractured pieces.

The band spent this past summer on the road with Honey Revenge, South Arcade, Games We Play and Chase Petra on the idobi Radio Summer School Tour. They also recently performed with Shinedown, in addition to appearances at Vans Warped Tour in Long Beach and Mexico City. They'll be closing out 2026 at Vans Warped Tour in Orlando, in addition to opening for Taking Back Sunday at their annual holiday show in December.

Next year Winona Fighter will hit the road for a two-leg US headline tour, kicking off on January 21. For a full list of upcoming shows or to purchase tickets, visit winonafighter.com.

About Winona Fighter

Brutal & Extremely Underrated takes its title from a line in 'SELF AFFIRMATIONS,' the sixth song on the record, in which frontwoman Chloe 'Coco' Kinnon — who also plays drums on all its songs — wrestles with both the way she perceives herself and the way she feels others may perceive her. The Nashville trio is completed by lead guitarist Dan Fuson and bassist/producer Austin Luther.

Like its predecessor, the new album was self-produced by Luther and recorded at his home studio, though the band says there is a shift In Focus from the debut: whereas that album generally looked inward, this one looks outward, reacting to and directly addressing the state of the world.

'We went into this record with a little bit more knowledge and confidence,' said Kinnon. 'There's more swagger, and we had bigger goals for ourselves.'

'We definitely felt that second record cloud hanging over everything,' admitted Luther, 'but we also felt we were making something that was really great. It's not a sharp pivot, but it is an evolution. We didn't want to make the second record a copy of ourselves. We wanted to grow and evolve, so that was very nerve-wracking. Like, are we changing the right amount or too much? Are people going to get it or is it going to turn people away? I think, for all of us, it was a bit of a mind game, but we just went with our gut overall because we wanted to make a kick-ass record.'

'I still feel - in a good way - that we have a lot to prove and a lot to give,' added Fuson. 'We do have still a lot of confidence, and we're trying to just continually do better. And I think these songs reflect that like forward momentum in both our songwriting and our playing.'

The album opens with 'TV On The Radio,' described as a rush of melody and aggression that sets the tone for what follows. The second track, 'BOMBS AWAY,' is described as the most overtly political song on the record, a hardcore punk track centered around immigration raids that have been ramping up across the USA over the past year.

The album was recorded over the course of two sessions, the first of which coincided with an ice storm that left most of Nashville without power, including the garage where the band was recording. The band outsourced mixing to Grammy Award-winning engineer Greg Collins, who has worked with System Of A Down, U2, Eels, and No Doubt.

'LEECH' was written after Kinnon read online comments about the first record. 'Lily Cut Her Hair' is a song Kinnon co-wrote with PUP's Stefan Babcock about one of her closest friends. The album closes with 'Title (REDACTED),' which the band says is a partial reference to the Epstein Files but started life as a song about AI.

'That song is such a perfect way to end the record,' said Kinnon, 'because it is - and we are - real. We speak on real things, we're real people, everything on the record is real. Every instrument, every vocal take. There's this one line on that song where it sounds like I'm almost out breath, but I didn't want to edit that out. We wanted to keep the rawness and the realness in it, and I hope people can feel that.'

Brutal & Extremely Underrated Tracklist

1. TV On The Radio

2. BOMBS AWAY

3. LEECH

4. DEAD HORSE

5. You Don't Have A Clue

6. SELF AFFIRMATIONS

7. HAWK FOOT

8. OUT! THERE!

9. Lily Cut Her Hair

10. PARA SIEMPRE

11. BULLY BUSTER

12. Title (REDACTED)

Upcoming Tour Dates

11/14 – Orlando, FL @ Vans Warped Tour *

12/12 – Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom (w/Taking Back Sunday)

1/21 – Bentonville, AR @ Momentary Rode House

1/22 – Dallas, TX @ AM/FM

1/23 – Austin, TX @ Brushy Street

1/24 – San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger

1/26 – Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent

1/28 – San Diego, CA @ Soma Side Stage

1/29 – Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room

1/30 – Los Angeles, CA @ Roxy

1/31 – San Francisco, CA @ Independent

2/2 – Sacramento, CA @ Starlet Room @ Harlows

2/4 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin

2/5 – Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret – MRG

2/6 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos (Daydream State)

2/8 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Court

2/10 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird

2/12 – Kansas City, MO @ recordBar

2/13 – St. Louis, MO @ Old Rock House

3/4 – St. Paul, MN @ Amsterdam

3/5 – Chicago, IL @ The Bottom Lounge

3/6 – Indianapolis, IN @ HiFi

3/7 – Detroit, MI @ Catacombs

3/9 – Toronto, ON @ Garrison

3/11 – Philadelphia, PA @ First Unitarian Church

3/12 – New York, NY @ Bowery Ballroom

3/13 – Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club

3/14 – Hamden, CT @ Space

3/16 – Washington, DC @ The Atlantis

3/18 – Raleigh, NC @ Motorco

3/19 – Charlotte, NC @ Neighborhood – Side Room

3/20 – Atlanta, GA @ Loft at Center Stage

3/26 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement East

9/9-9/13 – Miami, FL @ Shattered Shores Cruise *

* - indicates festival date

Photo Credit: Hannah Hall