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{{Use mdy dates|date=October 2023}}
{{Short description|American musician}}
{{Infobox musical artist
{{Infobox musical artist
|name = Isaac Brock
|name = Isaac Brock
|image = IsaacBrock20100719.jpg
|image = IsaacBrock20100719.jpg
|caption = Brock performing at the [[Orange Peel (venue)|Orange Peel]] in [[Asheville, NC]] on July 19th, 2010
|caption = Brock performing in 2010
|background = solo_singer
|background = solo_singer
|birth_name =
|birth_name = Isaac Kristofer Brock
|Born = {{Birth date and age|1975|7|9}}
|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1975|7|9}}
|BirthPlace = {Helena, Montana}
|birth_place = [[Helena, Montana]], U.S.
|death_date =
|death_date =
|genre = [[Indie rock]]
|genre = [[Indie rock]], [[indie folk]], [[experimental music]]
|occupation =
|occupation = Musician
|years_active = 1993–present
|years_active = 1992–present
|instrument = [[Vocals]]<br/>[[Guitar]]<br/>[[Ukulele]]<br/>[[Piano]]<br/>[[Banjo]]
|instrument = [[Vocals]], [[guitar]], [[ukulele]], [[piano]], [[banjo]]
|label = [[Epic Records|Epic]], [[Sub Pop]], [[Up Records]], [[K Records]]
|label = [[Epic Records|Epic]], [[Sub Pop]], [[Up Records]], [[K Records]]
|associated_acts = [[Modest Mouse]]<br/>[[Ugly Casanova]]<br/>[[Wolf Parade]]
|associated_acts = [[Modest Mouse]], [[Ugly Casanova]], [[Wolf Parade]], [[Mimicking Birds]]
⚫
}}
|Notable Instruments = [[Ibanez and Wicks Custom]]
'''Isaac Kristofer Brock''' (born July 9, 1975) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, principal songwriter, guitarist and only constant member of the [[indie rock]] band [[Modest Mouse]], as well as his [[side project|side project band]], [[Ugly Casanova]].
}}

'''Isaac Brock''' (born July 9, 1975 in [[Helena, Montana]]) is the lead singer, guitarist, banjoist, and songwriter for the [[United States|American]] [[indie rock]] band [[Modest Mouse]], as well as his [[side project|side project band]], [[Ugly Casanova]]. As a songwriter he is noted for his clever wordplay and frequent use of metaphors, philosophical lyrics, themes of oppressive rural lifestyles, and certain phrases and sayings commonly used in the early to mid-20th century and in [[blue collar]] environments.<ref>Houchins, Palmer. "[http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2005/06/]," Paste Magazine. Retrieved June 14, 2005.</ref><ref>Bowers, William. "[http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/8/]," Pitchfork Media. Retrieved November 17, 2003.</ref>
As a songwriter, Brock is noted for his wordplay and frequent use of metaphors, philosophical lyrics, themes of authentic rural lifestyles,<ref name="Schreiber">{{cite news |last=Schreiber |first=Ryan |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/8332-sharpen-your-teeth/ |title=Sharpen Your Teeth |work=Pitchfork |date=May 12, 2002 |access-date=May 12, 2002}}</ref> and phrases and sayings commonly used in the early to mid-20th century and in [[blue collar]] environments.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2005/06/ |title=Archived copy |access-date=April 1, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090706084432/http://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2005/06/ |archive-date=July 6, 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/8/ |title=Top 100 Albums of the 1990s - Page 8 |publisher=Pitchfork |access-date=May 15, 2017 |archive-date=June 23, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090623024352/http://pitchfork.com/features/staff-lists/5923-top-100-albums-of-the-1990s/8/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Brock is the sole founding member of Modest Mouse still with the band and the only member to appear on all of its studio albums.


==Early life==
==Early life==
Isaac was born in Helena, Montana. During his childhood, Brock and his mother and sister lived in Montana and Oregon before moving to Issaquah Washington when Isaac was in 5th grade. Brock was home-schooled for part of his school career. When his mother's house flooded 3 times, she was forced to move in to her future husband's trailer. Brock asked to stay behind in his own room until the new home was completed. He lived in the flooded home until the house was sold. After a short period of living in a friend's basement, he moved into the "Shed" built on the land next to his mother and stepfather's trailer. It was there that he, [[Eric Judy]] (bass) and [[Jeremiah Green]] (drums) first started practicing music together.
Brock was born in [[Helena, Montana]]. During his childhood, he lived with his mother and sister in Montana and Oregon in hippie communes and churches before moving to [[Issaquah, Washington]] when he was 11 years old.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AlN-17xfY88C&q=%22isaac%20brock%22%20%22commune%22&pg=PA138 |title=SPIN - Google Books |date= July 2000|access-date=May 15, 2017}}</ref> Brock was home-schooled in his early education. When his mother's house flooded three times, she was forced to move into her future husband's trailer. Brock asked to stay behind in his own room until the new home was completed. He lived in the flooded home until the house was sold. After a short period of living in a friend's basement, he moved into the "Shed" built on the land next to his mother and stepfather's trailer.

As a young boy he was raised in a Christian religious sect called the [[Grace Gospel Church]]. He told an interviewer from ''[[The Guardian]]'' that he was asked to [[speak in tongues]] when he was six: "I didn't feel the spirit of the fucking Lord rushing through me," he says. "I definitely felt awkward. I thought. 'What's the best way to make this stop?' So I ripped off some words from Mary Poppins and said them fast, and the deacons are going, 'Yeah, all right!'"<ref name=Guardian>{{cite news|last1=Simpson|first1=Dave|author-link1=The Guardian|title=Wanted: one world-famous guitarist|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2007/mar/09/popandrock3|access-date=June 18, 2014|work=The Guardian|date=March 9, 2007}}</ref>

In 1992, when he was sixteen, Brock moved to Washington, D.C. for the summer where he met his girlfriend. Brock traveled back and forth from the East Coast to Issaquah in Washington State where he took a community-college course to get his high school diploma before moving back to D.C., to New York's East Village, and then the Seattle area. It was there that he, [[Eric Judy]] (bass) and [[Jeremiah Green]] (drums) first started practicing music together in the Shed.

In 2023, Brock was a guest singer and musician on the song "We Got to Move" for the album ''[[Los Angeles (Lol Tolhurst, Budgie, and Jacknife Lee album)|Los Angeles]]'' by [[Lol Tolhurst]], [[Budgie (musician)|Budgie]], and [[Jacknife Lee]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Trendell |first=Andrew |date=July 24, 2023 |title=Lol Tolhurst, Budgie and Jacknife Lee talk new project ''Los Angeles'' |work=[[NME]] |url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/lol-tolhurst-budgie-and-jacknife-lee-talk-new-project-with-los-angeles-3472310 |access-date=July 24, 2023}}</ref>


==Personal life==
==Personal life==
[[File:Isaac Brock 2021.jpg|alt=A photo of Isaac Brock in a Hawaiian shirt playing guitar|thumb|Performing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with Modest Mouse in August 2021]]
Although many of his songs use religious themes, Brock describes himself as "not really religious at all," adding that "I'm 100 percent on the whole [[Christianity]] thing being a crock of shit, pretty much." He claims to "toy around with the whole Biblical thing," because it "just has amazing characters" and also identifies himself as "pretty much" an atheist.<ref name="Modell">{{cite news
Although many of his songs use religious themes, Brock describes himself as "not really religious at all", adding "I'm 100 percent on the whole [[Christianity]] thing being a crock of shit, pretty much." He claims to "toy around with the whole Biblical thing," because it "just has amazing characters" and also identifies himself as "pretty much" an atheist.<ref name="Modell">{{cite news
|last=Modell
|last=Modell
|first=Josh
|first=Josh
|title=Modest Mouse interview
|title=Modest Mouse interview
|url=http://avclub.com/content/node/23015
|url=http://www.avclub.com/article/modest-mouse-13862
|work=[[The A.V. Club]]
|work=[[The A.V. Club]]
|publisher=[[The Onion]]
|publisher=[[The Onion]]
|date=April 7, 2004
|date=April 7, 2004
|access-date=January 2, 2007
|accessdate=2007-01-02
}}</ref>
}}</ref>


His songs have also addressed his substance abuse, as in "The Good Times Are Killing Me." Brock admits to past drug use, and now says that drugs are "just something I kind of have to fight... I just try and make sure that it's not around, or I'm not around it."<ref name="Modell" />
He has talked about the [[DUI]]s he has gotten and cutting himself onstage with a pocket knife.<ref>{{cite web|author=mtv |url=http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1619003/modest-mouse-misanthrope-music.jhtml |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120209052108/http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1619003/modest-mouse-misanthrope-music.jhtml |url-status=dead |archive-date=February 9, 2012 |title=Modest Mouse: Misanthrope Music |publisher=MTV |date=August 18, 2009 |access-date=May 15, 2017}}</ref> His songs have also addressed his substance abuse, as in "The Good Times Are Killing Me". Brock admits to past drug use, and now says that drugs are "just something I kind of have to fight... I just try and make sure that it's not around, or I'm not around it."<ref name="Modell" /> In a 2003 interview with Salut Les Copains Magazine, Brock explained how the decision to quit drugs was influenced by his experiences. "...I was laying down in this aisle, at Powell's Books, reading an atlas when this meth-head tripped over me." Isaac said, "He called me a faggot and mumbled as he wandered off. I saw a reflection of myself and didn't want to be seen like that."
<ref>{{cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s).-->
|date=February 14, 2003
|title= Musique Américaine Moderne
|journal= [[Salut les copains (magazine)|Salut les Copains]]
|issue= 1112
}}</ref>

In 2004 his adopted brother Ansel Vizcaya was killed in an avalanche climbing Mount Rainier.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Valania|first=Jonathan|title=Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock Wants To Be More Than A Myth|url=https://www.buzzfeed.com/jonathanvalania/modest-mouses-isaac-brock-wants-to-be-more-than-a-myth|access-date=February 7, 2021|website=BuzzFeed|date=March 30, 2015 |language=en}}</ref>


Brock is a former [[A&R]] man for the record label [[Sub Pop]]; his most notable accomplishment with them was signing [[Wolf Parade]] in 2004.<ref>{{cite web
Brock is a former member of the [[A&R]] team for the record label [[Sub Pop]]; his most notable accomplishment with them was signing [[Wolf Parade]] in 2004.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://www.subpop.com/bands/wolf_parade/apologies/
|url = http://www.subpop.com/bands/wolf_parade/apologies/
|title=Apologies to the Queen Mary
|title = Apologies to the Queen Mary
|publisher=Sub Pop
|publisher = Sub Pop
|access-date = January 2, 2007
|accessdate=2007-01-02
|url-status = dead
|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061130042345/http://www.subpop.com/bands/wolf_parade/apologies/
|archive-date = November 30, 2006
}}</ref>
}}</ref>


Brock resides in Portland, Oregon in a house with many taxidermied animals.<ref>{{Citation|last=Womb Vacation|title=Isaac Brock's House Tour|date=April 19, 2011|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDayx4OoetI |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/IDayx4OoetI |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |url-status=live|access-date=November 26, 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Tom Breihan |url=http://pitchfork.com/news/39217-isaac-brock-talks-180-south-modest-mouse-portland-mayor-portrait/ |title=Isaac Brock Talks 180° South, Modest Mouse, Portland Mayor Portrait |publisher=Pitchfork |date=June 21, 2010 |access-date=May 15, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://stopsmilingonline.com/story_detail.php?id=935 |title=Q&A: ISAAC BROCK of Modest Mouse (Excerpt) :: Stop Smiling Magazine |publisher=Stopsmilingonline.com |date=December 9, 2007 |access-date=May 15, 2017}}</ref> A portrait of Brock wearing lederhosen and standing in front of a giant boar hung for many years in the office of Portland mayor [[Sam Adams (Oregon politician)|Sam Adams]].<ref>{{cite web|author=Tom Breihan |url=http://pitchfork.com/news/39029-portrait-of-modest-mouses-isaac-brock-hangs-in-portland-mayors-office/ |title=Portrait of Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock Hangs in Portland Mayor's Office |publisher=Pitchfork |date=June 4, 2010 |access-date=May 15, 2017}}</ref> He made a cameo appearance in season two of the sketch comedy show ''[[Portlandia (TV series)|Portlandia]]''. His character was shown donating records to a pre-school library.
Isaac currently resides in Portland, Oregon.


After having signed Lisa Molinaro to his Glacial Pace label in 2010, with her band [[Talkdemonic]], the pair soon entered into a relationship. Molinaro joined Modest Mouse as a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist in 2011. They broke up in 2017.
===Accusation of rape===


Brock has three children. His first was born February 2, 2002. According to High Times magazine published November 2018, he also has a daughter, born some time in 2018.<ref>{{Citation|last=High Times|title=Cheap Therapy: Modest Mouse on Using Cannabis for Better Mental Health|date=July 1, 2018|url=https://hightimes.com/?p=192616|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/PGOyO |archive-date=August 25, 2022 |url-status=live|access-date=August 25, 2022}}{{cbignore}}</ref> In another interview with a radio station 102.1 “The Edge”,<ref>{{Citation|last=102.1 The Edge|title=Modest Mouse returns with a new album, their first in six years|date=June 25, 2021|url=https://youtube.com/C9gc9PImB9E |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/C9gc9PImB9E |archive-date=August 25, 2022 |url-status=live|access-date=August 25, 2022}}{{cbignore}}</ref> it was revealed Brock had another daughter born sometime in 2020 or 2021.
In March, 1999, a 19-year-old woman filed a police report accusing Brock of rape. The allegations started right before Modest Mouse was to begin a nationwide tour with Seattle [[garage punk]] band [[Murder City Devils]]. The allegations led to an alleged fist fight between members of the Murder City Devils and Isaac Brock, after which Brock reportedly moved to Florida.<ref>{{cite web
|url=http://cgi.thestranger.com/1999-06-24/city2.html
|title=Rape Case in Limbo
|last=Shapiro
|first=Samantha M.
|date=1999-06-24
|accessdate=2006-09-16
|publisher=[[The Stranger (newspaper)|The Stranger]]
|archiveurl = http://web.archive.org/web/20061128002814/http://cgi.thestranger.com/1999-06-24/city2.html |archivedate = 2006-11-28}}</ref> Charges were never pressed, and Brock maintains his innocence.<ref name="Modell"/> In a 2004 interview with ''[[The A.V. Club]]'',<ref name="Modell" /> he claimed: {{cquote|It's an allegation that was withdrawn, and of course that didn't get any press. It was complete and utter bullshit, and the whole situation was so complicated that it's hard for me to go into lots of detail. At the time, I figured I'd just shut up and give this young lady enough rope to hang herself, you know? It fucked up my life once, and I'd prefer to just let it go.... Before this all happened, I never believed that anyone would lie about rape. That was my stance: No one lies about this shit. It really made me have to adjust my entire view of people, politics, and my own personal politics. I used to be like, "Kill rapists!" And all of a sudden I have this false allegation against me. I remember totally writing people off that I'd heard had even been in just awkward sexual situations with girls, like "That guy's a fucking prick, I'll never talk to him again." It was weird being on the receiving end of that. A friend of mine who's actually friends with that girl recently told me that she had totally withdrawn having said anything. I only just found out about that myself in the last six months. I knew that basically everyone, up to and including the police, was like, "This is bullshit." This person changed her story depending on who she was talking to. It was really just this fucked-up, weird thing.|30px|30px|Isaac Brock|''The A.V. Club''}}


==Equipment==
==Equipment==
Isaac's main guitar is custom made by Wicks Guitars.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wicksguitars.com |title=Wicks Guitars - Custom |accessdate=2009-09-15}}</ref> His amps are custom made by Soursound, based on a [[Fender]] SuperSix, but are highly modified.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.soursound.com/index.php/custom-work/custom-amp-for-issac-brock-from-modest-mouse/ |title=Custom Amp for Isaac Brock |accessdate=2009-09-15}}{{dead link|date=April 2011}}</ref>
Brock's main guitars are custom made by Wicks Guitars.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wicksguitars.com |title=Wicks Guitars - Custom |access-date=September 15, 2009}}</ref> Prior to his customs, Brock mainly used a Westone Corsair XA1420. He is also known to use various other guitars made by companies such as [[Peavey Electronics|Peavey]], [[Fender Musical Instruments Corporation|Fender]], and [[Gibson (guitar company)|Gibson]]. His amps are custom made by Soursound, based on a Fender SuperSix, but are highly modified.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.soursound.com/index.php/custom-work/custom-amp-for-issac-brock-from-modest-mouse/ |title=Custom Amp for Isaac Brock |access-date=September 15, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100718111021/http://www.soursound.com/index.php/custom-work/custom-amp-for-issac-brock-from-modest-mouse/ |archive-date=July 18, 2010 }}</ref>


==Glacial Pace==
==Glacial Pace==
In October 2005, Brock started his own record label called Glacial Pace. The label used to be a subsidiary of [[Epic Records]], but is now independent. Its first signee was Minnesota songwriter [[Mason Jennings]], followed by [[Love As Laughter]], [[Mimicking Birds]], [[Morning Teleportation]], and [[Talkdemonic]].
In October 2005, Brock started his own record label called Glacial Pace. The label used to be a subsidiary of [[Epic Records]], but is now independent. Its first signee was Minnesota songwriter [[Mason Jennings]], followed by [[Love As Laughter]], [[Marcellus Hall]], [[Mimicking Birds]], [[Morning Teleportation]], [[Talkdemonic]], [[Survival Knife (band)|Survival Knife]], [[Justin Trosper|Nocturnal Habits]], and Mattress.{{CN|date=October 2023}}


==References==
==References==
Line 66: Line 79:


==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [http://www.modestmousemusic.com Official Modest Mouse Website]
* [http://modestmouse.com/ Official Modest Mouse Website]
* [http://www.glacialpace.com Glacial Pace Recordings]
* [http://www.glacialpace.com Glacial Pace Recordings]
* [http://www.spin.com/articles/video-vault-modest-mouses-isaac-brock Spin.com "Video Vault: Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock"]
* [https://www.spin.com/2008/04/video-vault-modest-mouses-isaac-brock/ Spin.com "Video Vault: Modest Mouse's Isaac Brock"]


{{ModestMouse}}
{{ModestMouse}}


{{Authority control}}
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->

| NAME =Brock, Isaac
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH =1975-07-09
| PLACE OF BIRTH = {Helena, Montana}
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
⚫
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brock, Isaac}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brock, Isaac}}
[[Category:1975 births]]
[[Category:1975 births]]
⚫
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:A&R people]]
[[Category:A&R people]]
[[Category:American atheists]]
[[Category:American atheists]]
[[Category:American banjoists]]
[[Category:American banjoists]]
⚫
[[Category:American male singers]]
[[Category:American rock guitarists]]
[[Category:American rock guitarists]]
[[Category:American rock singers]]
[[Category:American alternative rock guitarists]]
[[Category:Sub Pop artists]]
[[Category:Epic Records artists]]
[[Category:K Records artists]]
[[Category:People from Issaquah, Washington]]
[[Category:Musicians from Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:Songwriters from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Songwriters from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:20th-century American singers]]
[[Category:Sub Pop artists]]
[[Category:American male guitarists]]
[[Category:People from King County, Washington]]
[[Category:American indie rock musicians]]
[[Category:People from Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:American alternative rock singers]]
[[Category:20th-century American guitarists]]

[[Category:21st-century American guitarists]]
{{Link GA|es}}
[[Category:Songwriters from Oregon]]
[[es:Isaac Brock]]
[[Category:Singers from Oregon]]
[[ko:아이작 브록]]
[[pl:Isaac Brock (muzyk)]]
[[Category:Singers from Washington (state)]]
[[Category:Guitarists from Washington (state)]]
[[sv:Isaac Brock]]
[[Category:Guitarists from Oregon]]
[[Category:Modest Mouse members]]
[[Category:Ugly Casanova members]]
[[Category:20th-century American male singers]]
[[Category:21st-century American male singers]]
[[Category:21st-century American singers]]
[[Category:American male songwriters]]

Latest revision as of 04:41, 9 October 2024

Isaac Brock
Brock performing in 2010
Brock performing in 2010
Background information
Birth nameIsaac Kristofer Brock
Born (1975-07-09) July 9, 1975 (age 49)
Helena, Montana, U.S.
GenresIndie rock, indie folk, experimental music
OccupationMusician
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar, ukulele, piano, banjo
Years active1992–present
LabelsEpic, Sub Pop, Up Records, K Records

Isaac Kristofer Brock (born July 9, 1975) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He is the lead vocalist, principal songwriter, guitarist and only constant member of the indie rock band Modest Mouse, as well as his side project band, Ugly Casanova.

As a songwriter, Brock is noted for his wordplay and frequent use of metaphors, philosophical lyrics, themes of authentic rural lifestyles,[1] and phrases and sayings commonly used in the early to mid-20th century and in blue collar environments.[2][3] Brock is the sole founding member of Modest Mouse still with the band and the only member to appear on all of its studio albums.

Early life

[edit]

Brock was born in Helena, Montana. During his childhood, he lived with his mother and sister in Montana and Oregon in hippie communes and churches before moving to Issaquah, Washington when he was 11 years old.[4] Brock was home-schooled in his early education. When his mother's house flooded three times, she was forced to move into her future husband's trailer. Brock asked to stay behind in his own room until the new home was completed. He lived in the flooded home until the house was sold. After a short period of living in a friend's basement, he moved into the "Shed" built on the land next to his mother and stepfather's trailer.

As a young boy he was raised in a Christian religious sect called the Grace Gospel Church. He told an interviewer from The Guardian that he was asked to speak in tongues when he was six: "I didn't feel the spirit of the fucking Lord rushing through me," he says. "I definitely felt awkward. I thought. 'What's the best way to make this stop?' So I ripped off some words from Mary Poppins and said them fast, and the deacons are going, 'Yeah, all right!'"[5]

In 1992, when he was sixteen, Brock moved to Washington, D.C. for the summer where he met his girlfriend. Brock traveled back and forth from the East Coast to Issaquah in Washington State where he took a community-college course to get his high school diploma before moving back to D.C., to New York's East Village, and then the Seattle area. It was there that he, Eric Judy (bass) and Jeremiah Green (drums) first started practicing music together in the Shed.

In 2023, Brock was a guest singer and musician on the song "We Got to Move" for the album Los Angeles by Lol Tolhurst, Budgie, and Jacknife Lee.[6]

Personal life

[edit]
A photo of Isaac Brock in a Hawaiian shirt playing guitar
Performing in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with Modest Mouse in August 2021

Although many of his songs use religious themes, Brock describes himself as "not really religious at all", adding "I'm 100 percent on the whole Christianity thing being a crock of shit, pretty much." He claims to "toy around with the whole Biblical thing," because it "just has amazing characters" and also identifies himself as "pretty much" an atheist.[7]

He has talked about the DUIs he has gotten and cutting himself onstage with a pocket knife.[8] His songs have also addressed his substance abuse, as in "The Good Times Are Killing Me". Brock admits to past drug use, and now says that drugs are "just something I kind of have to fight... I just try and make sure that it's not around, or I'm not around it."[7] In a 2003 interview with Salut Les Copains Magazine, Brock explained how the decision to quit drugs was influenced by his experiences. "...I was laying down in this aisle, at Powell's Books, reading an atlas when this meth-head tripped over me." Isaac said, "He called me a faggot and mumbled as he wandered off. I saw a reflection of myself and didn't want to be seen like that." [9]

In 2004 his adopted brother Ansel Vizcaya was killed in an avalanche climbing Mount Rainier.[10]

Brock is a former member of the A&R team for the record label Sub Pop; his most notable accomplishment with them was signing Wolf Parade in 2004.[11]

Brock resides in Portland, Oregon in a house with many taxidermied animals.[12][13][14] A portrait of Brock wearing lederhosen and standing in front of a giant boar hung for many years in the office of Portland mayor Sam Adams.[15] He made a cameo appearance in season two of the sketch comedy show Portlandia. His character was shown donating records to a pre-school library.

After having signed Lisa Molinaro to his Glacial Pace label in 2010, with her band Talkdemonic, the pair soon entered into a relationship. Molinaro joined Modest Mouse as a multi-instrumentalist and vocalist in 2011. They broke up in 2017.

Brock has three children. His first was born February 2, 2002. According to High Times magazine published November 2018, he also has a daughter, born some time in 2018.[16] In another interview with a radio station 102.1 “The Edge”,[17] it was revealed Brock had another daughter born sometime in 2020 or 2021.

Equipment

[edit]

Brock's main guitars are custom made by Wicks Guitars.[18] Prior to his customs, Brock mainly used a Westone Corsair XA1420. He is also known to use various other guitars made by companies such as Peavey, Fender, and Gibson. His amps are custom made by Soursound, based on a Fender SuperSix, but are highly modified.[19]

Glacial Pace

[edit]

In October 2005, Brock started his own record label called Glacial Pace. The label used to be a subsidiary of Epic Records, but is now independent. Its first signee was Minnesota songwriter Mason Jennings, followed by Love As Laughter, Marcellus Hall, Mimicking Birds, Morning Teleportation, Talkdemonic, Survival Knife, Nocturnal Habits, and Mattress.[citation needed]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Schreiber, Ryan (May 12, 2002). "Sharpen Your Teeth". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 12, 2002.
  2. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on July 6, 2009. Retrieved April 1, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ "Top 100 Albums of the 1990s - Page 8". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on June 23, 2009. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  4. ^ "SPIN - Google Books". July 2000. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
  5. ^ Simpson, Dave (March 9, 2007). "Wanted: one world-famous guitarist". The Guardian. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  6. ^ Trendell, Andrew (July 24, 2023). "Lol Tolhurst, Budgie and Jacknife Lee talk new project Los Angeles". NME. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
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  13. ^ Tom Breihan (June 21, 2010). "Isaac Brock Talks 180° South, Modest Mouse, Portland Mayor Portrait". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 15, 2017.
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  17. ^ 102.1 The Edge (June 25, 2021), Modest Mouse returns with a new album, their first in six years, archived from the original on August 25, 2022, retrieved August 25, 2022{{citation}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  18. ^ "Wicks Guitars - Custom". Retrieved September 15, 2009.
  19. ^ "Custom Amp for Isaac Brock". Archived from the original on July 18, 2010. Retrieved September 15, 2009.
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