Nope, it’s not your eyes playin’ tricks on you, cowboy/girl. That really IS Jason Lytle, Jim Fairchild, Kevin Garcia, Aaron Burtch, Tim Dryden
— a.k.a. Modesto, CA’s favorite sons who, way-way back in the go-go 90’s, formed the (cough) granddaddy of all mope rock bands, Grandaddy — ridin’ back in from the very same sunset we watched them ride out into a minute ago.
Turns out they forgot to tell us something pretty darn important: on October 20, the Sacramento-based Friendship Fever label will be releasing a new, 20th anniversary vinyl edition of the band’s debut full-length, 1997’s Under the Western Freeway. Yee-hoooo!
Yessiree, in addition to the classic album — freshly pressed to colored vinyl in all its original mumble-y, paranoid, country-fried, synth-swaddled glory — this new “deluxe” version comes with its own separate LP featuring “eight previously-unreleased tracks and demos,” as well as “a booklet of personal band photographs, flyers from the era, and liner notes by Gruff Rhys of Super Furry Animals.” The demos disc includes sketches of many-a-tune that would become campfire favorites in the years to come, such as “Bjork ELO Xanadu and the Birth of Chartsengrafs” (later known as “Ghartsengrafs”) and the wistful fan-favorite “For The Dishwasher.” But that ain’t all! Because it also includes a few never-before heard ditties, such as “Hawaiian Island Wranglers,” which the good old boys have been generous enough to share with us while we wait out the lonesome nights between now and late October.
Speaking of which, you can saddle-up and pre-order the album now, listen to the still remarkably sturdy-sounding folk-punk-tronica of “Hawaiian Island Wranglers,” and take a gander at the complete tracklisting — all right down below. It’s plum incredible!
Under The Western Freeway (20th Anniversary Edition) tracklisting:
LP 1: Under The Western Freeway
01. Nonphenomenal Lineage
02. A.M. 180
03. Collective Dreamwish of Upperclass Elegance
04. Summer Here Kids
05. Laughing Stock
06. Under the Western Freeway
07. Everything Beautiful Is Far Away
08. Poisoned at Hartsy Thai Food
09. Go Progress Chrome
10. Why Took Your Advice
11. Lawn & So On
LP 2: Unreleased 1997 Demos
01. Hawaiian Island Wranglers
02. For the Dishwasher (Slow Demo)
03. Dying Brains (Early Demo)
04. Summer Here Kids (Early Demo)
05. Le symphonique d’HeeHaw
06. Street Bunny (Fluffy Distortion Demo)
07. Bjork ELO Xanadu and The Birth of Chartsengrafs
08. Laughing Stock (Revelation Demo)
Grandaddy: Practice ‘97
01. I’m Not Alright
02. Summer Here Kids
03. Taster
04. I’m In Love WIth No One
05. Everything Beautiful is Far Away
06. Street Bunny
07. Lawn & So On
08. Levitz