Blu Wav

Grandaddy have long balanced warped indie rock with heartfelt ballads, finally allowing both sides of their musical personality near equal billing by the time of 2017s Last Place. Over time, those ballads have grown lusher as the arrangements have fully blanketed the sonic spectrum with warmth and ennui. On 2024s Blu Wav, the bands driving force -- and sole member allowed in the recording studio -- Jason Lytle tips the scale all the way to the side of balladry while adding classic country music and bluegrass to the mix in organic fashion. He dials down any traces of indie rock energy in favor of echoing walls of pedal steel, piano, acoustic guitars, and massive vocal harmonies. It makes for a record that’s both intimate and over the top, sort of like a weird, very post-modern take on the Flying Burrito Brothers if they owned a bunch of Flaming Lips records and were more interested in naps than living the wild life. Lytle is stuck smack in the dead center of melancholy throughout, a feeling that is made even more tangible by the preponderance of songs where the tempo is set to waltz time. Sometimes a slow waltz, sometimes a very slow waltz, but always old-fashioned and blue. Lytle doesnt do much to brush the clouds of melancholy away; even when the lyrics are odd or tell strange stories of office politics ("Watercooler") or being lost at sea or other places ("Ducky, Boris and Dart"), the mood doesnt waver at all. He might bring in loud guitars, strip away the orchestration, ladle on tons of pedal steel (courtesy of Max Hart), sit down at the piano and croon like he was a dust-caked Elton John ("East Yosemite") or indulge in the occasional bit of glitchy electronics, but it all sounds the same. Whether that is an enticement or a warning might depend on the potential listeners expectations of Grandaddy. If one is looking for the more adventurous and off-kilter band of their earlier days, steer clear. If its introspective, somewhat epic country-rock balladry one desires, then Blu Wav might be just the thing. Its certainly the groups most focused record to date, and if that seems a little unexciting, the emotional payoff will make it worthwhile in the end. ~ Tim Sendra