The Vaccines‘ guitarist Freddie Cowan has announced he is departing the band for the “foreseeable future”. In a statement shared across the band’s social media on Thursday, 16th March, Cowan wrote that while it wasn’t an easy decision to make, it was simply the right time.
“We loved and fought and cried and cared deeply for each other,” Cowan wrote . “I would say like brothers but actually I feel like it’s often the chosen family that really matters to us in our lives. The band will always be my family. We are bonded forever through the experiences we shared.”
The Vaccines: ‘If You Wanna’
Cowan went on to say that The Vaccines made his dreams a reality. “I never thought it was possible to stand on the Reading main stage or have a number one album,” Cowan wrote. “It was a wild and fulfilling ride and my life was richer and forever different for having been part of a truly great band.”
While his statement carried a definite air of finality, Cowan did flag that he hoped to “have another chapter together when the time is right”.
Vaccines frontman Justin Hayward-Young shared a short message on behalf of the band, sending Cowan “all the love, luck, and happiness in the world”. “When Freddie told us last summer that he wanted to step away from The Vaccines, it made sense to us all that he should follow his path to happiness outside of the band,” Hayward-Young wrote.
Hayward-Young added that he and the rest of the band – including founding bass player Árni Árnason and recent recruits, keyboardist Timothy Lanham and drummer Yoann Intonti – had just wrapped up recording their sixth album, the follow-up to 2021’s Back in Love City.
Cowan has just released his debut album as Freddie Cowan and the Scenarios, titled Answer Machine. It’s out via Bandcamp now, and will have an official streaming release on Wednesday, 22nd March.
Further Reading
The Vaccines Announce New Album ‘Back In Love City’ & Share Title Track
The Vaccines Frontman Is Frustrated People Can’t See How Good He Is At Writing Songs
