You know how sometimes somebody hands you a single piece of chocolate, and after eating it, you almost wish they hadn’t, because you can’t stop thinking about how you’d like more? This is, roughly, how I feel about John Andrews and the Yawns’ “Pennsylvania,” a gently rolling psych-folk tribute to the Keystone State. “Pennsylvania” is the first taste of Andrews’s upcoming full-length Bit by the Fang. And if this song is any indication, the album is going to be a doozy. In a good way. “Pennsylvania” is lo-fi without feeling forced—its lack of fidelity gives it warmth and makes it seem more authentically folk, like an old record your grandpa would pop on the turntable. Drawing inspiration from Andrews’s time living in the Amish country of Lancaster, PA, its easygoing guitar and vocals convey a fond familiarity that really gets at the soul of the place.
If the mellow qualities of “Pennsylvania” seem familiar, it may be because you’ve heard from John Andrews as the drummer for Jamaica Plain’s own Quilt and also the keyboardist for Woods. (On a mostly unrelated note, he’s also a cartoonist.)
Bit by the Fang is due out April 15 from Woodsist records. Finally, a tax day to look forward to!