In addition to his constant output with the Yawns dating back to 2015’s Bit By the Fang, John Andrews’ imprint on indie and DIY circles extends to his percussion work in the neo-psych outfit Quilt and includes credits on records from Woods and Purple Mountains—to say nothing of the playful animation work he’s contributed to peers including Brad Oberhofer. But with the Yawns resurfacing in 2021 after a four-year break with their Cookbook LP, they’ve already got their followup record Love for the Underdog slated to be released at the end of next month through their label home of Woodsist Records.
Leading up to that release, they’re sharing a second cut from the project following the mellowed-out opener “Checks in the Mail.” “Never Go Away,” in contrast, sees the band taking an upbeat turn while keeping things fairly minimal, Andrews’ gentle, soulful vocals pairing well with anchoring piano and hopeful keys. “Max Clarke [Cut Worms] and I split some time at our friend Rick Spataro [of Florist]’s home studio in Catskill, New York,” Andrews shares. “We recorded three Cut Worms songs and three Yawns songs. “‘Never Go Away’ came from these sessions. Live band recorded to tape. Keven Lareau on bass, Noah Bond on drums. It originally was a slower ballad type song inspired by Arthur Russell and Bob Dylan, but we picked up the tempo because I felt like the record needed one more upbeat song.”
Check out the track below, or stream it here.
