Additional information
Modest Mouse: Isaac Brock (vocals, guitar); Eric Judy (bass); Jeremiah Green (drums). Additional personnel: Ben Blankenship (guitar, lap steel guitar, keyboards); Greg Ratajczak (guitar); Tyler Riley (violin); Brian Deck (keyboards); Ben Massarella (percussion); Chiyoko Yoshida, Tim Rutilli (background vocals). Recorded at Clava Studio, Chicago, Illinois. Modest Mouse: Isaac Brock (vocals, guitar); Eric Judy (bass); Jeremiah Green (drums). Additional personnel: Ben Blankenship (guitar, lap steel guitar, keyboards); Greg Ratajczak (guitar); Tyler Riley (violin); Brian Deck (keyboards); Ben Massarella (percussion); Chiyoko Yoshida, Tim Rutilli (background vocals). Recorded at Clava Studio, Chicago, Illinois. After wowing the college and indie rock world with two lauded independent CDs, THIS IS A LONG RIDE FOR SOMEONE WITH NOTHING TO THINK ABOUT and THE LONESOME CROWDED WEST as well as many EPs, Modest Mouse signed to a major. This is often a cause for apprehension with indie favorites, but THE MOON & ANTARCTICA weathers these concerns. While the band's lo-fi sound is a little higher-fi in this major label debut, the basic pop structures that have always tied Modest Mouse's music together are pushed more to the forefront, and the production works well. All sonic changes are slight, and the band's sardonic, slightly skewed lyrics, with their evasive take on modern life, maintain their bite. Even the poppiest tune, the breezy "Gravity Rides Everything," is fraught with tape-effects and arrhythmic percussion. The band also retains a punked-out, dissonant, discordant approach on some tracks, such as the infectious "A Different City" and the creepy "Alone Out There." THE MOON & ANTARCTICA finds Modest Mouse with its musical integrity still intact.
Reviews
Rolling Stone (7/20/00, p.139) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "...[They] show they can find microscopic humanity even within the most expansive spaces." Rolling Stone (7/20/00, p.139) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "...[They] show they can find microscopic humanity even within the most expansive spaces." Q (10/00, p.123) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Literate post-grunge pop....[They] seem capable of managing the journey towards the mainstream..." Q (10/00, p.123) - 3 stars out of 5 - "...Literate post-grunge pop....[They] seem capable of managing the journey towards the mainstream..." Alternative Press (7/00, p.103) - 3 out of 5 - "...Their most complex recording to date....proving that they are still experimenting with their sound and approach....it's nice to see them taking new paths at this stage. It's a very dark album..." Alternative Press (7/00, p.103) - 3 out of 5 - "...Their most complex recording to date....proving that they are still experimenting with their sound and approach....it's nice to see them taking new paths at this stage. It's a very dark album..." Magnet (8-9/00, p.85) - "...A dark album that shines very brightly....It's rare to hear a band that has a unique, absorbing sound..." Magnet (8-9/00, p.85) - "...A dark album that shines very brightly....It's rare to hear a band that has a unique, absorbing sound..." CMJ (1/08/01, p.17) - Included in CMJ's "Best of the Year" for 2000. CMJ (6/12/00, p.3) - "...As [vocalist/guitarist, Issac Brock's] internal mania is unleashed in the lyrics, the music is at once pop, punk, psychedelic and rootsy, filled with frantic, bending moments that coalesce into expansive interludes..." CMJ (1/08/01, p.17) - Included in CMJ's "Best of the Year" for 2000. CMJ (6/12/00, p.3) - "...As [vocalist/guitarist, Issac Brock's] internal mania is unleashed in the lyrics, the music is at once pop, punk, psychedelic and rootsy, filled with frantic, bending moments that coalesce into expansive interludes..." Melody Maker (7/22/00, p.51) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "...Beyond anything else they've ever acheived....taking in elements of Beck...the staccato-assault of Fugazi...and the taut punk of Wire...and Built To Spill without the penchant for big Sabbath guitar solos..." Melody Maker (7/22/00, p.51) - 3.5 stars out of 5 - "...Beyond anything else they've ever acheived....taking in elements of Beck...the staccato-assault of Fugazi...and the taut punk of Wire...and Built To Spill without the penchant for big Sabbath guitar solos..." Mojo (Publisher) (9/00, p.90) - "...One of the year's most oddly endearing records..." Mojo (Publisher) (9/00, p.90) - "...One of the year's most oddly endearing records..." NME (Magazine) (7/15/00, p.34) - 7 out of 10 - "...Their most well-rounded effort yet....Frustrating. Stubborn. But always charming." NME (Magazine) (7/15/00, p.34) - 7 out of 10 - "...Their most well-rounded effort yet....Frustrating. Stubborn. But always charming."
