The Sophtware Slump - Grandaddy

Far from being a laughing stock these bearded wonders have fashioned a monumental piece of work. Whatever way you reach this album, whether it be through the glowing press they have received, their cathedral like live shows or their previous records nothing can prepare you for the grandeur of the Sophtware Slump. Grandaddy may give off the impression of being uncultured hicks but they have it in them to create intelligent, fragile tunes that are likely to knock you sideways. That they have not achieved mainstream success is beyond me. It seems that unless you're under 23 and have glossy magazine type looks there isn't a hope you'll crack the charts. ...  Read the complete review

The Sophtware Slump is Grandaddy‘s second album, and features 11 wonderful, beautiful, intruiging songs about robots, household appliances, and modern accessories, which sounds like a strange concept for an album, but it really is an outstanding album. The album features wonderful lyrics, sung beatifully by Jason Lytle, with keyboards playing arpeggios on "The Crystal Lake", and other sounds sampled to give the album the feel of a futuristic landscape. As far as genres go, it is sort of American lo-fi, fuzz rock, played by a bunch of strange Americans, especially the drummer, he is strange. The first song is beautiful, "He‘s simple, ...  Read the complete review

I came across Californian based Grandaddy's album by pure chance and was much in need for something fresh in my CD collection - it more than fit the bill. I have fallen in love with this quirky and peculiar album. Grandaddy's 'The Sophtware Slump' is a remarkable work of sweeping ballads to subjects as eccentric as recently deceased, neglected robot's called Jed, that was created in the kitchen 'Jed the Humanoid', to peans to obsolescent pieces of mass technology; 'Broken Household Appliance National Forrest' and remote viewing of the world 'Miner at the Dial-a-view'. The whole album is infused with some sort of epic, ...  Read the complete review

Grandaddy are a relatively unheard of band – an American group with 4 or 5 albums, this being their latest offering I believe. Released in 2000, ‘The Sophtware (sic) slump’ offers the listener a sumptuous soundscape – simple computer beats, intertwined with bare vocals, pleasant piano and rocking guitar. Stylistically this album draws comparisons to ‘Ok Computer’, but in places sounds more like The Flaming Lips or Sparklehorse. Their own conglomeration of styles ranges from Space rock and technologically fused lyrics to spangley indie-chic, back to floaty mysterious music. It may take some getting used to – but its ...  Read the complete review

I was introduced to Grandaddy with the tracks "The Crystal Lake" and "Hewlett's Daughter". The Sophtware Slump was on my Christmas list because of these songs, and I don't regret that. The tracks of this album are all good in their own right, but I find the album as a whole a bit samey. Most of the tracks are the same kind of thing, which while it is good on its own, an album full of it can be quite mind-numbing. Tracks I particularly like are Jed The Humanoid, a tale about a being created but then neglected, and Miner at the Dial-a-view, which is bizzare in a good way. Many people compare this to ...  Read the complete review