On Where Are We Now, Melbourne songwriter Winter McQuinn blends psych-folk warmth with quiet urgency, turning shared anxieties into songs of reflection and connection.

Winter McQuinn has a way of making heavy themes feel gentle. Based in Melbourne/Naarm, his music sits somewhere between psych-folk and soft rock, carrying a distinctly 70s ease without slipping into nostalgia. His new album Where Are We Now takes its title from a conversation with his mum and spirals outward into questions of identity, community, and the uncertainty of life under “environmental, neo-fascist slow collapse.” Written largely in his Northcote home studio and fleshed out with a rotating cast of collaborators, the record captures both the intimacy of solitary songwriting and the lift that comes from shared creativity. We caught up with McQuinn to talk about trusting the flow, making music with friends, and why collaboration feels as essential as the songs themselves.

For those unfamiliar with your music, can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?

Hi! My name is Winter McQuinn, I am a musician / songwriter based in Melbourne / Naarm in so-called ‘Australia’. I make music that’s been described as “warm, soft but not sweet and a mix between psych-folk and soft rock that has a 70s edge without being twee or a caricature".

What inspired the title Where Are We Now?

My mum! We were chatting about the concept together and she came up with the title. She’s a constant inspiration and as soon as she said it, I knew I had to use it haha.

How does it connect to the themes explored throughout the album?

I think the question Where Are We Now? connects and sums up the kind of introspective nature a lot of the song's lyrics have as well as the shared anxiety that I and a lot other people feel at the moment under this kind of environmental, neo fascist slow collapse.

Can you share a bit about the collaborative process for this album?

Every song had a slightly different process but kinda followed the same trajectory in that I would usually start with an idea and then invite collaborators over to my home studio where we would usually finish the song in the one session. Rarely did it take more than one or two sessions and I think that really helped to not overthink anything and just go with the flow and excitement of new ideas.

How did you choose the artists you worked with?

I just ended up reaching out to a bunch of artists I really liked the work of or who were a pal who I hadn’t made music with before. Some said no, some said yes! I tried to mix it up with crew that I knew had a similar music taste and some that might push things in different directions.

Given the introspective nature of your lyrics, do you find it challenging to open up in your songwriting?

I think the context of the recording being mainly in my home studio, it was easier to open up and share lyrical ideas / pass the pencil so to speak.

How did your home studio in Northcote influence the sound and feel of Where Are We Now?

I guess the deadness of my little room where most of the drums were recorded really came through. The piano sound also was a nice overarching sound across the record. The acoustic guitars also are super consistent in the recording and which ones I used across the album.

What role does visual art play in your music, particularly regarding the album artwork and overall aesthetic?

A big role for sure! I want every album artwork to match the feeling overall of the music. Luke Player really nailed the artwork, I love how communal it feels and think it matches the sounds super well.

Are there specific moments or songs in this album that you feel particularly proud of, and why do they resonate with you?

I really love the first three songs on the album, they all feel unique and stand out on their own yet connected in this kind of time capsule way. I think more specifically, the drum part on Making Cents was super fun to play, I was really over caffeinated and wanted to just have a fun evening by myself in the studio haha thus, super playful fills were born.

How do you see the themes of environmental consciousness and shared anxiety evolving in your music moving forward?

I think as the situation on planet Earth evolves and the ever hurtling passage of time evolves, so will these themes in my music. Most of my lyrics are just my subconscious brain dumping my anxieties and thoughts into the music and my anxieties are all based on what's going on in the world.

I really hope that one day soon all I’ll wanna write about is how awesome everything is.

In what ways do you think your sound has evolved since your debut album, A Rabble Of Bees, to this latest release?

I think its evolved heaps personally, A Rabble Of Bees wasn’t even really meant to be a cohesive album at first. It was just a collection of songs I had written that weren’t in the Sunfruits realm and then it took Josh from Third Eye Stimuli to say that he wanted to put out a record for me to kinda consider doing a solo thing. The positive feedback and nice reception was also a nice little validation and sign that maybe I would enjoy pursuing a solo career more intentionally. From there, every record has been a step up in intentionality and songwriting I think!

In saying that, this new record and Rabble Of Bees were both mainly recorded by me in a home studio, albeit Rabble Of Bees was recorded with an SM57 and SM58 haha.

Can you tell us about any memorable experiences or insights gained during the recording sessions with various collaborators?

I think the main takeaway / insight was how good and valuable it is to bring in other people to your solo music thing. Another person's musical brain is gonna come up with ideas you might not have considered and I think on the flipside, it’s really nice having someone else be excited for an idea that you might not feel like is very good etc. Main takeaway, making music with other people = fun and good for the soul.

What can fans expect from your upcoming tour, and how do you plan to bring the album's themes to life on stage?

We’re playing most of the new album + song tracks from Move To The Trees and a couple new songs. It was an interesting challenge working out how to play all these songs with one group of people and they’re in a really cool spot now I think. Kind of laid back iterations of all the songs. I really love my band and I think we’re sounding good, come along!

What do you love right now?

Independent artists and labels, really loving the Melbourne / Naarm music community at the moment, so many shithot bands and songwriters around at the moment it’s pretty crazy.

What do you hate right now?

Fascism, sexism, misogyny, any kind of bigotry and AI.

Name an album you’re still listening to from when you were younger and why it’s still important to you?

I’ve been revisiting Chris Cohen’s catalog and I’m maybe even more obsessed with 2016 album As If Apart than when it came out. I think the production and songwriting elements are so impressive yet understated and soft but sophisticated, very good and still in my top 5 all time list.

When someone hears your music for the first time, what do you hope sticks with them?

I hope they wanna listen to it again.

Start Listening To: Winter McQuinn