The band's current configuration is Isaac Brock (vocals, guitar), Tom Peloso (strings, horns, bass, keyboards), Jim Fairchild (guitar), and Eric Judy (bass)). Plummer has recently become the new drummer for The Shins.
Brock came up with the name "Modest Mouse" when he read the Virginia Woolf stream of consciousness essay The Mark On the Wall in which the author described the working middle class as "modest mouse-coloured people"
Brock frequently moved around with his mother when he was a child. Around this time, his mother left his father for his father's brother (Brock's uncle). Brock's mother's house flooded and forced them to move into his mother's new husband's trailer, but there was no room for Brock. Brock stayed behind, living in the second story of the flooded house, until he was eventually evicted by police. He then moved into a shed next to his mother's house and it is said this is where Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green and bassist Eric Judy first began playing music.
In 1994, the band recorded their debut EP, Blue Cadet-3, Do You Connect?, at Calvin Johnson's Dub Narcotic Studios, which was then released on Calvin's record label K Records. Then followed a single with Sub Pop that was recorded by producer Steve Wold at Moon Studios. Wold, who in the mid-2000's would begin to perform under the name Seasick Steve, would also perform on the band's albums, but was never an official member of the band. After moving to Up Records Modest Mouse put out several releases recorded at Moon Studios, including 1996's This Is A Long Drive For Someone With Nothing To Think About. This double LP was produced and recorded by Steve Wold. The next offering on UP was Interstate 8; also produced by Steve Wold. 1997's The Lonesome Crowded West, (also recorded at Moon Studios, by Scott Swayze) turned out to be the band's breakthrough album. The Lonesome Crowded West gained the band a cult following and is now widely considered by many critics to be one of the defining albums of mid-90s indie rock.
In 2000, Modest Mouse released The Moon And Antarctica, their first album on a major label (Epic Records). The band enjoyed some success on alternative radio with the singles "3rd Planet" and "Gravity Rides Everything." Lead singer Isaac Brock has since put out an album with his side project Ugly Casanova on Sub Pop Records.
In 2003, drummer Jeremiah Green quit the band; the official word was that he was quitting to work with his side project, Vells. He was replaced with two members, drummer Benjamin Weikel (who also drummed for The Helio Sequence) and guitarist Dann Gallucci (Murder City Devils). Weikel being new to the band and Gallucci returning to the band for the first time since This is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About. On April 6, 2004, Modest Mouse released the platinum-selling Good News For People Who Love Bad News, which scored two hits with "Float On" and "Ocean Breathes Salty". In 2004 Jeremiah Green returned to the band, and Benjamin Weikel now drums exclusively for The Helio Sequence. Dann Gallucci left the band in August, and they toured with Hutch Harris of The Thermals during the fall of 2004.
Modest Mouse was mentioned by name in the 2005 Supreme Court decision in the case of MGM v. Grokster. Justice 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."
In 2005, multi-instrumentalist Tom Peloso, who already played various instruments on Good News For People Who Love Bad News, officially joined the band. In 2006, Johnny Marr, former guitarist for The Smiths, became an official member of the band.
On March 20, 2007, the band released their fifth album, We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank. Four singles were released from the album: "Dashboard", "Missed the Boat", "We've Got Everything" and "Little Motel". The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 album chart. James Mercer of The Shins provides backing vocals on three songs.
In 2009, they released No One's First And You're Next, an EP of unreleased songs from around the time Good News and We Were Dead were recorded, and two songs that had already been released, "I've Got It All (Most)" and "King Rat". The video for King Rat was directed by late actor Heath Ledger.
In 2009, Johnny Marr left the band and was replaced by Jim Fairchild, formerly of Grandaddy. The band performed at several festivals throughout 2009 and 2010, including the main stage of the Reading and Leeds Festivals in 2010.
After an 8 year wait, the band's latest full-length is "Strangers To Ourselves", released March 17th, 2015- two weeks after the original release date, March 3rd, 2015. The album art is an aerial photo of an RV resort located in Mesa, Arizona. Five singles were released before the album, "Lampshades on Fire", "Coyotes", "The Ground Walks, with Time in a Box", "The Best Room", and "Of Course we Know".
Drummer Jeremiah Green passed away from cancer on December 31, 2022 at the age of 45.
Invisible
Modest Mouse Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And shoot to God
A storm-suffered owl
You're not invisible inside your car
No matter what stupid sort of mission you're on
Well, you're not invisible inside your car
I go absolutely mental
Well, you're not invisible inside your car
No matter, you could breathe it like your flies in a jar
Yeah, you're not invisible
I like the sailing, teeming
Well, it's true that the moon could pull it back and far away from me
I should just let it be
Well, it's true that the moon could pull it back and far away from me
(And it's sad)
Oh, we had to have some kind
Room shaped like a charm
Well, you weren't invisible
Not all along
No matter how many eagles came in the door
We were not invisible
I knew that
I like the sailing, teeming
Well, it's true that the moon could pull it back and far away from me
And there's the orphan sea
We were never invisible, but that I guess we did not see
Of course this all had been laid down
Way before we lay down for it all
Before we had a course, of course
Of course this all had been laid down
Of course we lay down
Of course we lay down
Of course we lay down
Of course we lay down
Of course we lay down
Of course we lay down
I like the sailing, teeming
Well, it's true that the moon could pull it back and far away from me
I like the orphan sea
Well, we were never invisible, but that I guess we could not see
We'll get crushed by the ocean
But it will not get us wet
Crushed by the ocean
But it will not get us wet
Crushed by the ocean
But it will not get us wet
Crushed by the ocean
But it will not get us wet
The opening lines of the song “Invisible” by indie rock band Modest Mouse are beautifully vague yet deeply contemplative. The first line, “Oh, well lesson dance / And shoot to God,” seems to suggest that the singer is trying to learn a lesson from the dance of life, but also feels helpless or angry toward God. The second line, “A storm-suffered owl,” adds another mysterious layer to the lyrics, as if the singer is identifying with an animal that has been through a tumultuous experience. These lines set the tone for the rest of the song, which is filled with complex and poetic language that seems to encourage the listener to contemplate their own existence and the world around them.
The lyrics “You're not invisible inside your car” are repeated throughout the song, suggesting that the singer is trying to remind themselves of their own humanity and vulnerability. Cars are often thought of as protective pods that shield us from the outside world, but the singer seems to be saying that we are still connected to the larger world and cannot completely isolate ourselves from it. The lyrics “No matter what stupid sort of mission you're on” reinforce this idea, suggesting that even when we are focused on our own goals or busy with our own lives, we are still part of a larger interconnected system.
The final lines of the song, “We'll get crushed by the ocean / But it will not get us wet,” are both poetic and thought-provoking. The ocean has long been a symbol of the vastness and power of nature, and the idea that we can be crushed by it but remain dry suggests a sense of detachment or detachment from physical reality. Perhaps the singer is suggesting that our minds and spirits can be crushed by the overwhelming enormity of the world, but that we can still remain separate and unaffected on some level. These lyrics are a reminder that while we are part of a greater whole, we are also unique individuals with our own experiences and perspectives.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, well lesson dance
Let's dance to the lesson (of life)
And shoot to God
And aim to reach God (or a higher power)
A storm-suffered owl
An owl that has experienced the discomforts of a storm (symbolic of facing hardships)
You're not invisible inside your car
Being in a car doesn't make you invisible from the world
No matter what stupid sort of mission you're on
No matter how foolish your purpose may be
Well, you're not invisible inside your car
Again, being inside a car doesn't hide you from the world
I go absolutely mental
I go completely insane
Good ramblin' George
A reference to an unknown person named George
No matter, you could breathe it like your flies in a jar
Whatever it is, you can't escape it and you're trapped like a fly in a jar
Yeah, you're not invisible
Once again affirming that nobody can hide from the world, even if they wanted to
I like the sailing, teeming
I enjoy the idea of sailing and being surrounded by life
Well, it's true that the moon could pull it back and far away from me
The moon's gravitational pull can affect things on earth, including the artist's situation
I should just let it be
I should accept the situation as it is and not try to change it
(And it's sad)
The situation is unfortunate or unfortunate things have happened
Oh, we had to have some kind
We needed something of some sort
Room shaped like a charm
A room that has a delightful shape or features
Well, you weren't invisible
Someone was present and could be seen
Not all along
But it wasn't like that the whole time
No matter how many eagles came in the door
No matter how many problems or obstacles arose
We were not invisible
Once again, confirming that one can't hide from the world
I knew that
The artist knew all along that they couldn't be hidden from the world
And there's the orphan sea
The ocean, which has no affiliation with anyone or anything
We were never invisible, but that I guess we did not see
The singer realizes that they were never hidden, but they didn't notice it before
Of course this all had been laid down
Of course, all of this had already been established or predetermined
Way before we lay down for it all
Long before we encountered these situations
Before we had a course, of course
Before we had direction or a clear path to follow
I like the orphan sea
The singer enjoys the idea of the ocean being alone and without affiliation
We'll get crushed by the ocean
The ocean will be overwhelming and overpowering
But it will not get us wet
But it won't physically affect us or harm us
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: ERIC JUDY, ISAAC BROCK, JEREMIAH GREEN, JOE PLUMMER, JOHNNY MARR, TOM PELOSO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
pogash87
Am I missing something? How comes their dropping all these Videos to old-ish songs??
Absolutely can't wait to see these guys live in July!!!
The Drum Knight
It’s the 15 year anniversary of the album. That may be the reason.
David Wilson
new tour dropping! Manchester here i ocme
Riot Grrrl
Me too❤❤
ExWaifuPillow
I listened to this song 100s of times on Spotify last year lmao
ModestMootsey
A lot of their older videos look like crap, probably 'remastering" the music videos or something. They look a lot better and not grainy lol
Nathan David
Please don’t ever stop making music. Said without intention of negative pressure. Just, pure bonkers respect. Damn. 💪💚👌🔥😍🤯
Siddthekid
Can I start a petition to get Johnny Marr and Eric Judy back into Modest Mouse for one more album?
Eric Salinis
Best band of all time. Lyrics are deeper than the tempo sets.
Andon . EXE
@ktk44man Sidd is a real one 👍👍👍