Modest Mouse - The Moon & Antarctica
(Epic)
Modest Mouse's major label debut begins with "Everything that keeps me together is falling apart" and ends with the declaration that human
beings "ain't made of nothin' but water and shit." So, it goes without saying that this record is kind of a downer. That, of course, is not
necessarily bad. In fact, when considering a Modest Mouse record, its quite the opposite. The more depressing, the better. So, it goes without saying, then,
that this is a damn fine effort.
Now, do not think that this is exactly the same Modest Mouse that we have all known and loved. Where their early releases suffered from being uneven in
tone and quality, The Moon and Antarctica is a solid and cohesive work. Where the Lonesome, Crowded West (my personal favorite) was a
bit bloated, with too much filler between its bursts of genius, The Moon and Antarctica is focused and better developed. However, at times it can
get kind of weird: the record is filled with strange bits of studio trickery and overdubs. It has the sound of an album where the band took some time to
really explore and polish the songs rather than just bang them out as fast as they can (read: as cheaply as possible).
At the heart of it all is the some ol' Mouse: loose, rambling songs, which vary between being loud, tense, loose, lurching, melodic, lackadaisical
(and sometimes all of those things at once), all wrapped up in a small town drawl and delivered with emotional potency. "3rd Planet" and "Dark Center of
the Universe" are loud and powerful songs not dissimilar to the best parts of The Lonesome, Crowded West, but somewhat more mature in their
construction. "Wild Packs of Family Dogs," a song consisting mostly of Isaac Brock singing and playing an acoustic guitar, has a fully realized feel, rather
than just tossed off as it may have been in an earlier recording session. "Tiny Cities Made of Ashes" is the only flat out failure, with goofy processed and
layered vocal tracks and a cheesy keyboard filling in for the absence of the usually emotive guitar work; it sounds completely out of place and
character. Plus its not really a very good song.
Brock is the only lyricist besides Nick Cave that I actually give a shit what he is singing about. He has a great talent for making the nonsensical
thoughtful, and for being provocative and evocative through the use of plain language. He can be both intelligent and catchy as hell--a rare gift,
indeed--paying close attention to an appropriate melodic and rhythmic flow without sacrificing content for a fit or rhyme. Modest Mouse would
not be the band that they are without the words that he sings (which is really more than you can say for 99% of rock vocalists). The lyrics on this album
sound more personal and, thus, are a bit more painful to hear. However, this quality adds a kind of gravity to the songs which has not been present on
previous albums. And, I don't really know where to fit this next part in, so I'll just stick it here: Jeremiah Green is one hell of a kick ass
drummer.
Ultimately, The Moon and Antarctica lacks a full-bore work of pure genius like "Cowboy Dan" or "Never Ending Math Equation" but this is their
first big city record, and they may need time to settle into their new digs. We can only hope that happens before they succumb to Major Label Curse.
|
