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Modesto-spawned alt-rock band Grandaddy is coming home.
The group will perform 7 p.m. May 31 at the Gallo Center for the Arts. Tickets go on sale to the public Friday, Feb. 6, at 10 a.m.
In 2025, Grandaddy set out on its first North American tour in more than 20 years to celebrate the 25th anniversary of its “landmark” album, “The Sophtware Slump,” according to an Instagram post by the Gallo Center.
Grandaddy was formed by friends in Modesto in 1992 — frontman Jason Lytle, bassist Kevin Garcia and drummer Aaron Burtch, according to a May 2017 story in The Bee. Guitarist Jim Fairchild and keyboardist Tim Dryden joined in 1995.
Grandaddy gained international acclaim with the 1997 release of its first full-length album, “Under the Western Freeway,” the story said. The group built a cult following with the release of albums “The Sophtware Slump” in 2000, “Sumday” in 2003 and “Just Like the Fambly Cat” in 2006.
The band broke up in 2006. While most of its members remained in the Modesto area, Lytle moved away and worked on solo and producing projects. The group briefly reunited in 2012 for a limited series of shows, according to the story. It came together again in 2016, with Lytle moving back to Modesto, and began playing, including a reunion show at Modesto’s Prospect Theater Project.
Grandaddy released its first new album in over a decade, 2017’s “Last Place.” The band toured behind the project in the United Kingdom and was set to begin a string of dates across California, the Pacific Northwest and Europe. But Garcia died of a stroke in early May of that year.
Garcia’s death was widely reported in the national and international music press, including Rolling Stone, NPR, Billboard and others.
The group canceled all of its concerts, with the exception of two set for that October at the Gallo Center, planned as a hometown honor to Garcia. Still grieving over Garcia’s passing, the band canceled those Modesto shows, as well.
The upcoming 2026 dates are a continuation of its “The Sophtware Slump” celebration, a press release provided by the Gallo Center says. “Like the 2025 run, the band will perform the beloved album in full, followed by a second set of fan favorites spanning their entire career,” it says.
Shows begin May 8 in Santa Ana, concluding at the Gallo Center, according to the band’s website. Current members include Lytle, Fairchild and Burtch.
Tickets will be available Friday on the Gallo Center’s website, www.galloarts.org, at the theater’s ticket office, 1000 I St., or by calling 209-338-2100.
