I Drove 16 Hours for Winona Fighter, and I’d Do It Again – 11/29/25

Photography & Review by Ash Schnoor

If you told me a year ago that I would’ve driven over 8 hours one way to see a silly little band I didn’t even know about a year prior to that, I would have NEVER believed you. Waterparks was the reason my friends and I were so close – but there was a little snake that was unexpected, Winona Fighter. Here we are, having driven down I-76 and I-70, sitting in the photo pit of KEMBA Live!. I’d never set foot in the city, let alone the venue, but I was as ready as ever. I only knew three things walking into the photo pit. One, that Winona Fighter’s music was really good. Two, that Coco ran around a LOT. And three, that the photo pit was really big for no reason (but I’m not complaining).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The band started off with “R U FAMOUS,” which was an excellent choice to open the set with. With this being the very first song of the entire night, this set the pace for an excellent show. This is one of my favorite songs of theirs, so being in the photo pit for this was AWESOME.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next was “I Think You Should Leave,” which is an awesome punk revenge-esque song. This song provided an amazing energy to the crowd while Coco was living up to her reputation of never ever standing still. It was during this time that it really affirmed my decision to travel so far for this band; it really was worth it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last in the first three was “Subaru,” which is my favorite song of Winona Fighter’s. This high-action song was amazing, with the crowd jumping along and singing. Coco provided amazing energy, and I was zooming around the abnormally large photo pit like there was no tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next in the set was “You Look Like a Drunk Phoebe Bridgers,” which is my next favorite song of theirs. Coco’s energy continued coursing throughout the stage, with Dan and Austin continuing that energy throughout their instruments. “I’M IN THE MARKET TO PLEASE NO ONE” quickly followed.

After that was an amazingly well-crafted cover of “Sabotage” by Beastie Boys, a song that fits Winona Fighter’s aesthetic wonderfully. Finally, they performed “Wlbrn St Tvrn” and “HAMMS IN A GLASS.”

Winona Fighter is an excellent band and even better performers. If you ever get a chance to attend one of their shows and don’t have to travel over 16 hours to get to it, I highly encourage it.

You can find out more about Winona Fighter here: Spotify // Instagram // Twitter