We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank
*We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank* is a gripping and satisfying recording, with skittering tempos, jerky rhythms, and delightful surprises around every quirky corner. Lead singer, guitarist, and gifted songwriter Isaac Brock sounds positively manic on the clattering “March Into the Sea.” A notable addition to the band on this recording is former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr, whose chiming, lyrical style meshes beautifully with Brock’s jagged and idiosyncratic playing.
Modest Mouse follow the unlikely success of "Float On" by recruiting former Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr and gently nudging toward new directions. The Shins' James Mercer guests.
A peculiar sort of ugliness has always helped define Modest Mouse's beauty: At the root—or often at the front—of Isaac Brock's catchy indie blueprints sits a vengeful bark, ornery guitars, and dark lyrics made darker by the fact that they're usually so incisive and smart. But there's a straight, bright line to be…
One of the oddest combinations in indie music happened last year with the announcement of Johnny Marr, famed guitarist with The Smiths, joining Modest Mouse for their tour with a view to helping them with their new album. This was all rather strange,…
Check out our album review of Artist's We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank on Rolling Stone.com.
Now that Modest Mouse have fully established themselves as a major-label indie rock band -- no longer an oxymoron! -- with the success of 2004's Good News for People Who Love Bad News (though they had actually been on Sony, through Epic, since 2000's The Moon & Antarctica), they face the difficult task of trying to follow up a mainstream hit while still retaining the adroit quirkiness that won them fans in the first place.
Is it possible to write a review of the new Modest Mouse record without mentioning “Float On”?
In what was perhaps the weirdest -- and, hands down, most disturbing -- moment in late television history, the surviving contestants on American Idol...