"Disconnect" and "Guide Down Denied" examine the disconnect between technology and man, while "Summer . . . It's Gone," "Skateboarding Saves Me Twice," and "Rear View Mirror" are nostalgic reminders of the escape that youth once promised. The record's emotional centerpiece, "Where I'm Anymore," is chock-full of the suburban detritus that Jason Lytle excels at animating: broken-down exercise bikes, garage-sale Sundays, oil-stained driveways, and yellow lawns, none of which affords a sense of place.
With its wistful melody, bubbling synths, layered guitars, and "meow-meow" harmonies, the song is Grandaddy's crowning achievement: playful, sad, panoramic, and intimate all at once. As farewells go, Just Like the Fambly Cat is a stone-cold -- but heartwarming -- classic.
