Modest Mouse

Modest Mouse released their first 7" in the spring of 1994 on K Records after having been together in various forms for three years. It would be a little while before they would go into a studio again to record, this time with enough material for their first full length release on Up Records, "This is a Long Drive for Someone With Nothing to Think About" which was recorded in the fall of 1995. Hailing from rural Issaquah, WA, the trio consisting of Isaac Brock on guitar and vocals, Eric Judy on bass, and Jeremiah Green on the drums would start playing shows and touring almost non-stop for the next eight years, with breaks seemingly only made to write new material and record other albums. 1996 turned out to be a very busy year for the trio, first releasing a 7" for the Sub Pop Singles Club, followed by their first full length release which had been recorded the year before, and then followed later by the "Interstate 8" ep. Jeremiah also joined up with Matt Steinke of Mocket fame for a new project, Satisfact this year. They recorded their first album in the midst of this busy year. 1997 kept the ball rolling, with two 7"s, the Fruit that Ate Itself ep on K Records, as well as the second full length release "The Lonesome Crowded West," Jeremiah somehow found the time to join up with James Bertram and co. to form Red Stars Theory. 1998 would find them still able to release another couple of 7"s as well as the Whenever You See Fit ep that came about as a result of the lengthy tour undertaken with label mates, 764-Hero. This was the song that they would end each show with, combining both bands for quite a finale. 1999 would seem to be a slow year, if it weren't for the second Red Stars record, and the non stop touring that has become a hallmark of the band. 2000 would signal the last release on Up Records, "Building Nothing Out of Something" (if you don't count the "Night on The Sun" vinyl ep) which combined the songs from Interstate 8 with the 45's that were released on Suicide Squeeze and Subpop. Right about this time they all started working on their first major label release, "The Moon and Antarctica" which was released on Epic in 2000, and shortly afterwards Isaac would start working on new material for the upcoming Ugly Casanova record, which was similiar to other records Isaac had worked on, but with different instrumentation as well as a new writing partner, John Orth. The record was titled "Sharpen Your Teeth" and was eventually released on SubPop in early 2002. Meanwhile, 2001 would see the release of Modest Mouse's earliest recordings, the "Sad Sappy Sucker" cd on K Records, as well as an ep of new material, "Everywhere and His Nasty Parlor Tricks" on Epic. Most recently, Jeremiah has taken a break from Modest Mouse to focus on another project, The Vells, who released an ep on James Bertram's Lucky Horse Industries label. Isaac added vocals for the last Six Parts Seven release on Suicide Squeeze. Meanwhile Eric, Isaac, Dann Gallucci and new drummer Ben Wiekel of Helio Sequence recorded the latest Modest Mouse album, entitled "Good News For People Who Love Bad News," which has just been released to much clamor. They'll be touring extensively throughout the year playing the new material, now rejoined by Jeremiah.