Modest Mouse : Lonesome Crowded West

  Isaac Brock - Guitar, Vocals
  Jeremiah Green - Drums
  Nicole Johnson - Vocals
  Scott Swayze - Guitar

Talk about original -- this band has something for just about everyone. They can do quiet, brooding acoustics like 'Bankrupt on Selling,' dark and pounding thrashers like 'Cowboy Dan,' funky jump-around emo like 'Jesus Christ Was an Only Child' -- just about anything. Throughout the whole album is a white-trash feeling and a sort of down-to-earth analysis of the state of the world, without sounding pretentious. Give this album a listen and you can be sure that you will be singing the rambling, catchy, almost whiny vocals in no time. If you dig indie rock at its very best, go pick this album up. ~ Blake Butler, All Music Guide

Issaquah, WA, indie rock trio MODEST MOUSE was formed in 1993 by vocalist/guitarist Isaac Brock, bassist Eric Judy, and drummer Jeremiah Green. This album was released in 1997 and was the band's first for US label MATADOR. And talk about original, the band has something for just about everyone! They can do quiet, brooding acoustics, dark and pounding thrashers, funky jump-around emo, just about anything. The opening track, 'Teeth Like God's Shoeshine,' explodes out of your speakers with sharp, see-sawing guitars and shouted vocals, an irresistible melange of angular rhythms andmighty, powerful dynamics. The rest of the songs are similarly pulled along by some unseen force, driven by an energy found in classic post-punk bands like Thinking Fellers Union, Local 282 or Drunken Boat.