Cameron Winter is an American musician who fronts the

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Geese A goose (: geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera '' Anser'' (grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (black geese). Some members of the Tadorninae subfamily (e.g., Egyp ...

. He released his debut solo album, '' Heavy Metal'', in 2024.

Early life

Winter grew up in

Park Slope Park Slope is a neighborhood in South Brooklyn, New York City, within the area once known as South Brooklyn. Park Slope is roughly bounded by Prospect Park (Brooklyn), Prospect Park and Eighth Avenue (Brooklyn), Prospect Park West to the east, ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, attending the Brooklyn Friends School. His mother is a writer and his father is a composer for TV and film. In his adolescence, he played sports but had to give them up due to concussions, after which he turned to music. In high school, he formed a band,

, with friends from school. After high school, he applied to

Boston University Boston University (BU) is a Private university, private research university in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. BU was founded in 1839 by a group of Boston Methodism, Methodists with its original campus in Newbury (town), Vermont, Newbur ...

with the intention of pursuing a degree in communications but ultimately chose to forgo college and pursue music as a career, along with his Geese bandmates, after signing with

Partisan Records Partisan Records is an independent record label with offices in London, Berlin, and Los Angeles, as well as in New York City, where the company was co-founded in 2007 by Tim Putnam and Ian Wheeler. The label, initially run out of Putnam's South B ...

in 2020.

Career

Geese

Formed in 2016 with Winter as their vocalist, keyboardist, and main songwriter, Geese has released three studio albums: ''A Beautiful Memory'' (2018), ''

Projector A projector or image projector is an optical device that projects an image (or moving images) onto a surface, commonly a projection screen. Most projectors create an image by shining a light through a small transparent lens, but some newer type ...

'' (2021), and '' 3D Country'' (2023).

Solo work

Winter made his solo debut in 2024 with two singles, "Vines" and "Take It With You", in the form of an EP titled ''Singles''. On December 6, 2024, he released his debut solo album, '' Heavy Metal'', to widespread critical acclaim.'''' It was named one of the best debut albums of 2024 by '' Paste'' and an early entry for one of the best albums of 2025 by several publications, given its late 2024 release''.'' Lizzy Goodman summarized in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' that ''Heavy Metal'' was "received as a tour de force ... But it has also turned Mr. Winter into the kind of artist that has fans analyzing every detail of his impressionistic lyrics and telling him his work has kept them from suicide. In other words, thas received the kind of response that a record earns when the artist who made it is on their way to a certain kind of highly personal stardom."

Artistry

Influences

Winter cites

Leonard Cohen Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian songwriter, singer, poet, and novelist. Themes commonly explored throughout his work include faith and mortality, isolation and depression, betrayal and redemption, soc ...

and

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

as the primary influences on his solo material. Critics have drawn further comparisons between Winter and the likes of

Tom Waits Thomas Alan Waits (born December 7, 1949) is an American musician, composer, songwriter, and actor. His lyrics often focus on society's underworld and are delivered in his trademark deep, gravelly voice. He began in the American folk music, fo ...

, Stephen Malkmus,

Jeff Mangum Jeffrey Nye Mangum (born 24 October 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who gained prominence as the founder, songwriter, vocalist and guitarist of Neutral Milk Hotel, as well for his co-founding of The Elephant 6 Recording Comp ...

, Bill Callahan and

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician and songwriter. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. Althoug ...

Voice

Winter's voice has been praised for its range and versatility. Describing Winter's vocals on ''Projector'', Jon Dolan of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' said that Winter "can hoist his voice into a

Thom Yorke Thomas Edward Yorke (born 7 October 1968) is an English musician who is the vocalist and main songwriter of the rock band Radiohead. He plays guitar, bass, keyboards and other instruments, and is noted for his falsetto. ''Rolling Stone'' desc ...

-an

falsetto Falsetto ( , ; Italian language, Italian diminutive of , "false") is the vocal register occupying the frequency range just above the modal voice register and overlapping with it by approximately one octave. It is produced by the vibration of the ...

, put on a posh pout à la

Julian Casablancas Julian Fernando Casablancas (born August 23, 1978) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist and primary songwriter of the Rock music, rock band the Strokes, with whom he has released six studio albums since their founding in 1998. Casabl ...

or Ian McCulloch of Echo and the Bunnymen, or lapse into a stentorian yawp that brings to mind

Mark E. Smith Mark Edward Smith (5 March 1957 – 24 January 2018) was an English singer-songwriter. He was the lead vocalist, lyricist and only constant member of the post-punk group the Fall. Smith formed the band after attending the June 1976 Sex Pistol ...

of The Fall or

Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. They comprise lead singer Alex Turner, drummer Matt Helders, guitarist Jamie Cook and bassist Nick O'Malley. The co-founder and original bassist Andy Nicholson ...

’

Alex Turner Alexander David Turner (born 6 January 1986) is an English musician. He is the lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Arctic Monkeys. Turner is known for his Songwriter, lyricism ranging from kitchen sink realism to surrealism, surreal ...

." Ian Blau of ''Rolling Stone'' said that Winter "shines throughout '3D Country'', where he "contorts his voice to fit any set of lyrics or musical style." When it comes to Winter's vocals on ''Heavy Metal'', Walden Green of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

'' characterizes his voice as a "woozy baritone", a "versatile and tender instrument ... immediately remarkable for its sheer range and depth of tone." Fellow musician

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...

lauded his voice on ''Heavy Metal'' as "glorious" and "emotive".

Songwriting

Described as "a songwriter par excellence" by Walden Green of ''Pitchfork,'' Winter's lyrics have been noted for both their cathartic and surreal qualities.''''

described his lyrics on ''Heavy Metal'' as "brilliant" and "blistering".

Discography

Studio albums

* '' Heavy Metal'' (2024)

EPs

* ''Singles'' (2024)

Singles

* "$0" (2024)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Winter, Cameron 2000s births Living people Singers from Brooklyn American rock keyboardists American rock singers 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American keyboardists American post-punk musicians American indie rock musicians American alternative country singers American country rock singers