Modest Mouse We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank by: Tom Bradbury Tue:27-Mar-07 Label: Epic Records Year: 2007 WB rating 83 out of 100

When I saw Modest Mouse in December, there was a heckler up the front who yelled out: “Why don’t you play something from before 2001” (to which I immediately thought: “Why don’t you fuck off?”). Brock responded: “I’m just doing my job, man”.

First of all, people who say that sort of thing really piss me off, why go to a concert and complain – did he really think they weren’t going to focus on their latest albums? This is a guy who obviously thinks that anybody who gets a crossover hit is a sell out, so somebody should tell him – Modest Mouse are a pop band. They are original, they are edgy, but they are still pop and there is nothing wrong with that. We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank sees Modest Mouse exploring similar music and lyrical terrain to what they did on Good News For People Who Love Bad News, and their pop bent is even more pronounced. This is a catchy album, but that does not mean it should be mistaken for lightweight.

Brock’s off-kilter pop sensitivity is immediately apparent on the opening track, ‘March Into The Sea’, where he inverts the typical wisdom by having a loud verse and a soft chorus – yet this inside-out methodology is extremely successful. Chaotic drums and guitars alongside Brock’s crazed screams of “Aha” create an extremely paranoid soundscape; the guitars sounds like they are being strummed so hard that they cannot hold the note, obviously going through some sort of detuning effect. But then it all stops and fades into a soothing melody in the chorus. “I’ll be beating my heart’s record for speeding”, Brock sings before ending in a frenzied assault equally as ferocious as the introduction.

Owing an obvious debt to Frank Black in his crazed yelp/growl, Brock continues to produce lyrics in his inimitable style. His most distinctive trait is probably his exploration of logical impossibilities and dynamic contrasts. “Trying to hide the daylight from the sun”, like Brock sings on ‘Fire It Up’, is obviously a futile exercise, but that is why these lyrics are imbued with such poignancy – the wistful desire for the unattainable. Likewise, Brock remarks on ‘Invisible’, “We were never invisible but that I guess we did not see”. Of course, Brock is never short of finding interesting ways of criticizing bastards too, singing on ‘Parting Of The Sensory’: “If you were the ship then who would ever get on?”

One of the best things about Modest Mouse has always been their ability to produce music that reflects the tone of their lyrical content. On ‘Little Motel’, probably the most moving track on the album, Brock explores the trials and tribulations of a relationship: “We treat mishaps like sinking ships/and I know that I don't want to be out to drift/Well I can see it in your eyes like I taste your lips/and they both tell me that we're better than this”. Muffled guitars augment the somber mood of the verses, then in the chorus drums enter to give weight to the wistful content of the lyrics, undercutting each repetition of the line, “That's what I'm waiting for”, building on the sentiment before breaking off into the thinking man’s guitar solo.

‘Parting Of The Sensory’, amongst others, demonstrates how, like Arcade Fire, Modest Mouse have the ability to use unconventional instruments without them sounding gimmicky. In the bridge, they employ the use of a mandolin, coupled with an old-time fiddle; it gives the song a timeless resonance. A lot of this album’s quieter songs sound like neo-Irish folk music, and you could imagine Brock singing sea shanties in the 17th century. Yet, in contrast, some tracks on this album are pure pop. For example, ‘Missed The Boat’, is very reminiscent of early ‘90’s R.E.M – chiming guitars, mid-tempo, similar backing harmonies and melodic structure. It even features backing vocals from the king of indie-pop himself, James Mercer. Johnny Marr has no doubt been instrumental in extending the pop sound, having proven himself in the past to be a master of melodious guitar work.

One of the strengths and weaknesses of We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank is that when listening to it you can often think of counterpart songs on Good News For People Who Love Bad News. It’s a strength because that was a great album, and it demonstrates that Modest Mouse are still in a songwriting purple patch. Yet it also means that Brock could be viewed as treading water slightly – another album of this could get old. A couple of the tracks on this album are a bit anonymous, merely replicating the now standard Modest Mouse dance/freak out dynamic, and after having listened to the album quite a few times, they still fail to make an impression.

We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank sees Isaac Brock further extending the pop sounds heard on Good News For People Who Love Bad News, proving that Modest Mouse are one of the premier voices in today’s indie-pop world. Coupling abrasiveness with gentleness they have forged a sound that is entirely their own. Now it only remains to be seen how far they can take this sound.