John Andrews And The Yawns / Woods Interview
Are you originally from NYC? What was your childhood like growing up? When did you first begin to fall in love with music and what was it that initially fascinated you about it? Was music relevant around your household growing up?
Nope I’m from New Jersey. Grew up coming to the city to go skateboarding though. I think I started making my own music when I was 16, shortly after a friend showed me The Devil and Daniel Johnston documentary. The idea of home recording music by myself was very appealing to me and I didn’t realize you could do that. I thought you just needed a full band and a studio, but nope, you just need a MacBook and a guitar. Both of my grandfathers were musicians. One played the trombone in the marine band and my other grandfather played trumpet in the “Russ Radice” big band. I guess Russ Radice was considered to be the Perry Como of Trenton, NJ.
Do you have any siblings? What would you and your friends do for fun growing up? When and where did you see your first concert that really made an impact on you in your formative years? Who were some of your earliest influences?
I’m an only child which I think lead to me being creative on my own. I was always making comic books and making stop animation videos with my action figures and my moms camcorder. I grew up skateboarding, which completely changed my life. I would say the most formative “concert” I went to (it was really just a show), was in Lancaster PA, 2011. Michael Hurley played with Bonnie Prince Billy, Meg Baird & Sir Richard Bishop. I decided to drop out of college to be a touring musician the day after that show. My earliest influences were people like Phil Elevrum, Calvin Johnson, Kyle Field, Karl Blau, Michael Hurley. I was fortunate to have been listening to really cool music in the 2000’s somehow. Those DIYers were just so fucking cool to me. They stood out.
Prior to forming The Yawns you participated in bands such as Quilt and the great Woods. Tell me about the origins of Quilt and Wisdom Tooth and how these groups came to be. You guys released a number of records on labels such as Mexican Summer, Spooky Town Records, and Folkadelphia. What were some of your most favorite times as well as releases from these outfits and why?
Quilt and Woods were very important bands for me. They were my formative years of being a musician. I learned how to tour, how to sing, what to do, what not to do. It was the most exciting time in my life when I started touring the country in my early 20s. I basically lived on the road. My favorite Quilt album is the first self titled on. A lot of magic surrounding those years. My favorite woods record is either At Echo Lake or Bend Beyond. I dont play on those records though.
How did you initially meet the Woods guys and what led to you joining them? How long were you with those guys? I understand you worked on records such as “City Sun Eater In The River Of Light” and “Love Is Love”. Would you mind telling me about those projects and some of the highlights of not only writing/recording them, but playing live gigs around that time?
I met Jarvis at the old Glasslands venue in Williamsburg, probably in 2012. I was just a big Woods fan. I bought the "Woods family creeps" CD at princeton record exchange in 2008 and was like, whoa this band is freaky, been a fan ever since. We contacted him through our record label Mexican Summer, about the possibility of recording and producing a quilt album. A few weeks into recording, he eventually asked if I wanted to start playing keys in Woods. I joined the band in the Bend Beyond era, and was full time on tour with them during “With Light and With Love” tour cycle. After that I became pretty busy touring with other projects, so I would just play in woods when I was available. I’ll always have fond memories of playing sold out Bowery Ballroom shows with Woods. It was such an exciting time. Also the Woodsist festivals back in Big Sur California were always amazing. Sitting in the grass, under the redwood trees, listening to Jessica Pratt perform. Those Big Sur festivals were truly the greatest.
Tell me about forming The Yawns around this time too. You guys have released a few records under the Woodist and are readying for the band’s fourth release, “Love For The Underdog”. Can you tell me about writing and recording this recording and the approach you wanted to take that differs from the previous works?
My first three records were mostly self recorded with the occasional guest. This is the first record that was performed live in a room with my band. I also really wanted big string arrangements on this record so I worked with my friend Simon Hanes. Most of it was recorded by Rick Spataro of the band Florist. A few songs were also recorded by Kevin Basko of Foxygen and Rubber Band Gun.
What has changed about the band over years since you guys first formed? What would you say has been the overall vision for the band? What do you find yourself expressing the most through the The Yawns vehicle and what do you hope folks get from the music the most?
The early stuff is so sketchy and I’m trying to make more detailed paintings now. I want each record to live in a different world, with a different theme and different ideas. I never want to write the same song twice. I’m always very inspired by my surroundings while writing songs, it started while living in Lancaster PA, then I bounced to live on a mountain in New Hampshire, and now I’m finding inspiration in New York City. The new record is definitely a New York Record.
What have you guys got in the works as 2023 continues to roll out nearing Spring/Summer aside from the new album in April? Is there anything else you would like to further share with the readers?
I booked 6 shows this April & May, but beyond that, I’m uncertain. I hope to play more shows. I will be honest, even though I’m putting out a new record, I’m growing concerned about the future of this project as far as touring and making records go. My life has basically revolved around playing music for ten years. I’ve been booking my own DIY tours forever and I’m starting to get burnt out doing everything on my own. I dont have a booking agent, I dont have a manager, I dont have a huge team of people working for me with a ton of money to put into this project. Anyways, im not looking for pity. I’m just being honest. Haha. Whenever someone is like, “why don’t you ever come to my city!”, like, obviously I’d love to, but it’s just not in the cards for every band, unless you’re lucky and the music industry accepts you and you get this golden ticket. I do, however have the amazing support from my friends and from Woodsist records, which is something I do not take for granted. I truly do appreciate that. If it wasn’t for Woodsist, I dont know what I’d do. The support from small DIY communities throughout America is what’s kept me going too, and thats kind of what the new album is inspired by. I will always be writing songs, and I hope to always be making records, in some capacity, even if its just on a four track recorder again someday.
