Modest Mouse
We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank
Rating: 8.4 (out of 10)
I have to admit that I'm a very biased reviewer as a huge Modest Mouse fan and pretty much any of Isaac Brock's distorted yelping is going to get a positive response, but I really enjoyed the new album. While it does not approach the heights of This is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About, The Moon and Antarctica, or their masterpiece Lonesome Crowded West, the days of the band making music like that are probably gone forever, and the new album is good in its own right, closer in nature to the more pop-heavy, mainstream-ready Good News for People who Love Bad News, but in most ways better. And although there is no track as immediately accessible as "Float On," it is possible that the new album could continue the Mouse's recent mainstream success, which would be good for the band, and for the sensibilities of the larger public, if not necessarily a wonderful thing for fans of indie rock. But good for them, and good for us. Modest Mouse is making enough money to still be making music over a decade into their careers, so I for one cannot complain that the music has veered toward greater accessibility, even if I still long for the glory of Lonesome Crowded West.
The album, especially the first half, actually reminds me of their early singles and EP collections, particularly The Fruit that Ate Itself and Sad Sappy Sucker, just with much better production values, musicianship, and "singing" by Brock. The songs are short, hook-laden, quirky, weird, and catchy as all hell, much like their earliest tracks. The Mouse I fell in love with is the one of the 14-minute "Whenever You See Fit" or 9-minute "The Stars are Projectors" or 7-minute "Teeth Like God's Shoeshine," but with the exception of the brilliant "Spitting Venom," no song extends past the 5-1/2 minute mark, and most come in right around a neat four minutes. But for the first half of the album at least, they are all really great songs, not a single clunker in there, which is something I cannot say for even LCW ("Cowboy Dan", "Long Distance Drunk" for instance).
"March into the Sea," perhaps the best song on the album, kicks things off with a subdued guitar, off-beat percussion and unfettered Brock emotionality, a short, sweet blast of pop brilliance that is basically a metaphor for the entire album - heavy on the references to the sea for some reason, heavy on the distorted vocals, heavy on the hooks, heavy on the great musicianship, and short of any major divergence from that formula. And much like the rest of the album, my ears aren't trained enough to capture the influence of new guitarist Johnny Marr on this track, but at least I can say the overall effort was well worth his addition. Plus when Isaac screams at the end "March on, march on, march on, well march on!" how can you not love it?
"Dashboard" follows, and is already a mainstream hit - at least in that I heard it all over Sirius's mainstream alternative station back when I still had a car that had Sirius - and is a very good track. Unfortunately, it doesn't hold up to repeated listens as well as, say, "Float On", so in the end it becomes a bit forgettable. "Fire it Up" makes up for that though, with a very catchy, beautiful, understated ditty about drinking or conversation or something, a song that sounds like it was pulled directly from The Fruit That Ate Itself and covered by a much improved band. I'm pretty sure that's a good thing.
"Florida" is probably the most ambitious track off the first half, but still retains a lot of pop sensibility despite the distortions that fill its verses. I really like "Parting of the Sensory," the second longest track on the album, which starts off as a slow near-ballad in the tradition of something approaching "Trailer Trash" but there is a steady build to more dramatic verses and guitars and classic Brock vocals like "Aw, fuck it, I guess I lost." It's a pretty great track, especially after the 2:20 mark when the line "Who the hell made you the boss?" kicks things into high gear. This may be the best song on the album as well.
"Missed the Boat" follows, a slow song that commits to the melody the entire way through. It borders on mundane at certain points, but is basically a mid-level pop gem elevated by the presence of Brock and the band. "We've Got Everything" is a well-worn road favorite that shows up as the 7th track here and is as good as I remember. The first half, to put it succinctly, doesn't have a "miss" in it, and has several brilliant gems ("March into the Sea", "Fire it Up", and "Parting of the Sensory"). Well done, guys.
Tracks 8 and 9 unfortunately end the streak of greatness, as neither "Fly Trapped in a Jar" or "Education" hold much value. But "Little Motel" recovers nicely, a song that reminds me mostly of "Baby Blue Sedan" or "Broke", from Building Something out of Nothing, borderline cheesy ballads that are somehow wonderful and that are missing from later Mouse albums. "Steam Engenius" is ok, although nothing particularly special, but "Spitting Venom" follows and the song is not only the highlight of the second half, but perhaps the best song on the entire album.
It's 8 1/2 minutes long and very much in the tradition of classic Modest Mouse, switching tempos frequently, repeating lines, allowing music and silence to fill the empty spaces between Brock's vocal gymnastics, and giving an all in all wonderful performance. The track builds steam as it goes and really climaxes beautifully. And I'm sorry if I brought up any unintended comparisons to pornography, but I'm not exactly a professional music critic, so deal. "Spitting Venom" is a wonderful song.
"People as Places as People" is another great song, and closer "Invisible" is pretty good, at least on subsequent listens. I have a feeling it will continue to grow on me. All in all, this is a pleasantly masterful album, one that does not have overt plays on mainstream appeal, despite what you may have suspected, but does stress shorter pop-based songs in the tradition of mid '90s Mouse instead of the wonderful turn of the century band. I'll take what I can get, though, and I think we can all be pretty damn certain that no other band making music today - indie, mainstream, or otherwise - will put out a collection of songs as diverse, strange, catchy, and wonderful as "Spitting Venom", "Fire It Up", "March into the Sea", "Little Motel", and "Parting of the Sensory" on the same album. Well done, guys.
When I saw the title of the album "We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank" I thought this was a recap of Syracuse's final game of this season.
Posted by: No more whining | March 22, 2007 at 09:40 AM
I was quite relieved that Modest Mouse were still capable of producing good music. Dashboard wasn't doing a lot for me, but the rest of the album makes up for it. I love Florida and Parting of the Sensory, but Spitting Venom is definitely the highlight. Btw, I love Cowboy Dan...
Posted by: wayne | March 24, 2007 at 09:10 PM