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Modest Mouse

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Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in the Seattle suburb of Issaquah, Washington by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About, their lineup has centered around Brock, Green and Judy. Guitarist Johnny Marr (formerly of The Smiths) joined the band in May 2006, along with percussionist Joe Plummer (formerly of the Black Heart Procession) and multi-instrumentalist Tom Peloso, to work on the album We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank. Guitarist Jim Fairchild joined the band in February 2009.

The band has accrued significant mainstream success since being signed to Sony's Epic Records in 2001 and have been one of the leading bands in the commercialization of indie rock, beginning with The Moon & Antarctica and Good News for People Who Love Bad News, which have been certified gold and platinum by the RIAA respectively. They have gone on to sell over three million records since.[1] Elements of Modest Mouse's early sound have been likened to or inspired by that of Pixies and numerous other alternative rock and space rock bands. Their name is derived from a passage from the Virginia Woolf story "The Mark on the Wall" which reads, "I wish I could hit upon a pleasant track of thought, a track indirectly reflecting credit upon myself, for those are the pleasantest thoughts, and very frequent even in the minds of modest, mouse-coloured people, who believe genuinely that they dislike to hear their own praises."[2]

History

Origins

In 1994, Isaac Brock, Jeremiah Green, Eric Judy, and John Wickhart recorded their debut EP, Blue Cadet-3, Do You Connect?, at Calvin Johnson's Dub Narcotic Studios. It was released under K Records. John Wickhart played bass guitar on the EP. Then followed a single, "Broke", under Sub Pop that was recorded by Steve Wold (now better known as bluesman Seasick Steve) at Moon Studios. During this time, Modest Mouse also recorded their would-be debut album Sad Sappy Sucker, but constant delays caused the album to be shelved and forgotten (it was officially released in 2001). Until making waves in the pop music world in 2004, many of their tours included stops at DIY/punk venues.

Up Records releases

After moving to Up Records,[3] Modest Mouse put out two full-length albums and other recordings recorded at Moon Studios, including the 1996 LP This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About. This album was produced and recorded by Steve Wold (at this time Wold was assisting in the recordings as well, but was not officially a part of the band). The next offering was Interstate 8, also produced by Wold. The 1997 album The Lonesome Crowded West (also recorded at Moon Studios, by Scott Swayze) turned out to serve as the band's breakthrough. The Lonesome Crowded West gained the band a cult following, and is now popularly considered to be one of the defining albums of mid-1990s indie rock. Prior to its release, the band had recorded the EP The Fruit That Ate Itself. In 1999, Up Records released a singles and rarities collection entitled Building Nothing Out of Something, which included the entirety of Interstate 8 except for the songs "Edit the Sad Parts" and "Buttons to Push the Buttons".

Signing with Epic Records

In 2000, Modest Mouse released The Moon & Antarctica, their first album on Epic Records. The album was more instrumental compared to their previous work, and this was partially due to Brock having his jaw broken during recording. Not knowing if he would be able to sing, he focused on making a more instrumental and experimental album.[4] The band enjoyed some success on alternative radio with the singles "3rd Planet" and "Gravity Rides Everything." It was critically well-received[5] including a 9.8 out of 10 score from online music magazine, Pitchfork Media.[6] It has subsequently gone on to receive further acclaim.[7] Brock has since released an album with his side project Ugly Casanova on Sub Pop, which was the only side project allowed due to the contract. The band licensed "Gravity Rides Everything" for a commercial for Nissan's Quest minivan, a move that Brock has publicly acknowledged as blatantly commercial but necessary to achieve financial stability.[8] In 2001, Modest Mouse released the EP Everywhere and His Nasty Parlour Tricks, a collection of unused songs from the The Moon and Antarctica recording sessions. In 2002, they joined Cake, De La Soul, The Flaming Lips, The Hackensaw Boys and Kinky on the Unlimited Sunshine Tour.

Mainstream success

In March 2003, Green quit the band after suffering a nervous breakdown; the official word was that he was quitting to work with his side project, Vells. The same year, he and bassist Eric Judy appeared on Adam Forkner's debut solo album, VVRSSNN. Green was replaced with two new members, drummer Benjamin Weikel (who also drummed for The Helio Sequence, as well as playing keyboard) and guitarist Dann Gallucci (who had been a member of Modest Mouse previously, and appears on Sad Sappy Sucker and The Lonesome Crowded West). On April 6, 2004, Modest Mouse released their fourth album, the platinum-selling Good News for People Who Love Bad News, which scored two hits with "Float On" and "Ocean Breathes Salty" (both of which they performed on Saturday Night Live on November 13, 2004[9]). The album was nominated for a Grammy for Best Alternative Rock Album that year. Later that year, Green returned to the band, and Weikel returned to drumming exclusively for The Helio Sequence. Gallucci left the band in August.

Modest Mouse was mentioned by name in the 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision in the case of MGM v. Grokster. Justice David Souter wrote that on the Grokster P2P network, "Users seeking Top 40 songs, for example, or the latest release by Modest Mouse, are certain to be far more numerous than those seeking a free Decameron, and Grokster and StreamCast translated that demand into dollars."[10]

Recent work

Jim Fairchild: current Modest Mouse touring guitar player- live in concert

In May 2006, Dann Gallucci (who had left the band amicably in September 2004) was replaced on guitar by Johnny Marr. The album, entitled We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank was released on March 20, 2007[11] after being delayed from December 19, 2006. The album was successful in being the first Modest Mouse album to reach number one on the US Billboard 200 charts, and spawned the hit single "Dashboard", as well as "Missed the Boat" and "We've Got Everything".

In issue 1045 of Rolling Stone magazine, Brock reported that his biggest priority is to finish a Modest Mouse EP; referring to the songs that did not make it onto Good News and We Were Dead. He says there are songs named "The Whale Song" and "Satellite Skin" as well as another song with The Dirty Dozen Brass Band.[12]

Isaac Brock says he will begin writing music for their next album during March. An update on the band's blog featured a picture of the band rehearsing new songs. The band had a tour with R.E.M. and The National in 2008 which ended in Atlanta.[13]

The band had begun a North American tour beginning in June 2008. The band returned to Florida for the first time since their November 2006 Bang Music Festival show where they were cut off stage early, with three shows in Miami, Orlando, and St. Augustine.[14] While an update on the Modest Mouse blog was subtitled catching up on some words for the next tour, it is in fact the lyrics to Heart Cooks Brain.[15] Modest Mouse recently finished their tour supporting We Were Dead after 2 years of promoting the record.

Modest Mouse released singles for the songs Satellite Skin, Autumn Beds and Perpetual Motion Machine in limited edition (a run of 4,000 each) vinyl 7 inches, featuring artwork by Joshua Mark Levy, J.Alex Stamos, and Natasha Wheat.

Jim Fairchild of Grandaddy and All Smiles replaced Marr as touring guitarist during the support of No One's First and You're Next, which was released on August 4, 2009,[16] composed of unreleased tracks from the recording sessions of Good News for People Who Love Bad News and We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank.[17]

Members

Current
  • Isaac Brock – lead vocals, guitars, banjo, ukulele (1993–present)
  • Eric Judy – bass, guitars (1993–present)
  • Tom Peloso – percussion, vocals, other instruments (2004–present)
  • Joe Plummer – percussion (2004–present)
  • Jeremiah Green– drums, percussion (1993–2003, 2004–present)
Former

Discography

Main article: Modest Mouse discography

Studio albums

EPs

References

  1. ^ "RIAA Searchable database–Gold and Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2009-03-14.
  2. ^ The Mark On The Wall by Virginia Woolf - Read Print
  3. ^ Epitonic.com: Your Source for Cutting-Edge Music
  4. ^ Many fans of progressive rock enjoy this album, as much of the instrumentation echoes prog rock tendencies.Modest Mouse | The A.V. Club
  5. ^ Modest Mouse: The Moon & Antarctica (2000): Reviews
  6. ^ [1]
  7. ^ Listology: Pitchfork's Top 100 Albums of 2000-2004
  8. ^ Modest Mouse | The A.V. Club
  9. ^ SNL Archives - Episode. Retrieved June 12, 2007.
  10. ^ Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc. Et Al. vs. Grokster, Ltd., Et Al. - Supreme Court of the United States Retrieved November 6, 2008.
  11. ^ Music - Modest Mouse Retrieved November 6, 2008.
  12. ^ Pitchfork Reveals Modest Mouse's New EP pitchforkmedia.com, retrieved April 6, 2008
  13. ^ Billboard Article for MM, billboard.com/, retrieved April 6, 2008
  14. ^ NME news article, NME.com, retrieved May 8, 2008
  15. ^ Modest Mouse blog, modestmouse.com, retrieved May 20, 2008
  16. ^ "Modest Mouse Confirm EP Details". idiomag. 2009-07-23. Retrieved 2009-07-24.
  17. ^ "Heath Ledger Directed a Modest Mouse Video". Pitchfork Media. 2009-03-12. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
  18. ^ a b http://www.myspace.com/modestmouse
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