Modest Mouse is one of the most important bands in indie rock. They advanced the popularity of the genre in the early 2000s more than any other band. Basically, they’re to blame for Arcade Fire. Here is every Modest Mouse album ranked flawlessly in a way no one could possibly disagree with because I’m an indie snob and my taste in music is better than yours.
7. The Golden Casket (2021)
We’re all legitimately happy that Modest Mouse was making weird music in 2021. But it sucks that it keeps taking 5+ years to get yet another mediocre record. If Captain Isaac and crew put out whatever songs they’d been working on each year, I think fans would be happier than having to wait forever to get a record with a few great songs and a lot of noodling. If I wanted that I’d listen to “Sad Sappy Sucker” and, no, we’re not ranking that one. Maybe the band’s commercial success makes them feel like their releases need to feel important. It’s like the band is being buried alive by their own success. Oh, shit. That album title’s clever.
Play it again: “We’re Lucky”
Skip it: “Walking and Running”
6. Strangers to Ourselves (2015)
This would have made a great EP. Or a solid follow-up to “We Were Dead…” if it were released in 2009 maybe. This record has some amazing songs that are on par with anything the band made at their peak. However, this album feels like a band regaining its musical footing after a long break, which is strange because in Isaac Brock’s blog, he said they were hard at work on it the entire time. That was a long eight years of blog-reading, Isaac, and the results were only kind of worth it.
Play it again: “God is an Indian and You’re an Asshole”
Skip it: “Pistol (A. Cunanan, Miami, FL. 1996)”
5. This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About (1996)
We’ve officially entered into classic Modest Mouse territory. The messy, drunk band of angry-yet-sensitive pioneers of the great hipster front. “Long Drive” is the band’s first official full-length release and it shows you exactly who this band is: wonderfully sloppy. I’d rank this one higher and talk about how groundbreaking it is if Built to Spill hadn’t already put out “There’s Nothing Wrong With Love.”
Play it again: “Dramamine”
Skip it: “Lounge”
4. The Moon & Antarctica (2000)
During an era where signing to a major label almost certainly meant changing your sound, Modest Mouse defied the odds and released this weird-ass masterpiece. This album brings out the softer side of the band, which is ironic because production was halted for months while Isaac Brock recovered from a street fight he got into with a group of dudes. He’s basically the 50 Cent of indie rock, minus the investment skills.
Play it again: “3rd Planet”
Skip it: “Tiny Cities Made of Ashes”
3. We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank (2007)
This is the one with Johnny Marr on it. What a fucking coup. There are riffs on here that really feel like a Modest Mouse/Smiths collaboration. This is also the first record they made with members of their wildly talented touring lineup during their most commercially successful period. They also had two drummers, which would have been obnoxious if it didn’t sound so good. It looked pretty silly though. Then again, so did a lot of indie rock at the time. At least they didn’t come on stage in a giant hampster wheel.
Play it again: “Little Motel”
Skip it: “Steam Engenius”
2. Good News for People Who Love Bad News (2004)
Prior to recording this album, Modest Mouse practically broke up and drummer Jeremiah Green left the band. They completely reinvented themselves in the studio to make one final album that would likely be their last. Once again, limitation breeds creativity and “Good News…” was a massive success. Hell, “Float On” even helped make Lupe Fiasco blow up and if anyone deserves success it’s the guy who wrote “Kick, Push.” The second and third tracks have completely different emotional tones to them but they’re the SAME CHORDS. These guys can even make pop music weird and excessively complicated. Fucking indie kings.
Play it again: “One Chance”
Skip it: “Dig Your Grave”
1. The Lonesome Crowded West (1997)
This is the perfect Modest Mouse record. It’s indisputable. Objectively, this record has the best lyrics, music, and production. It is flawless in its flaws and perfect in its perfection. It exists exactly as it should be. And now that you’ve read our Modest Mouse rankings, your taste in music has officially leveled up. We’re glad you totally agree with our rankings.
Play it again: “Polar Opposites”
Skip it: “Jesus Christ Was an Only Child”
Tim Armstrong may be worth 13 million dollars, have two Grammys, and have decades of sobriety behind him, but none of that stopped him from looking like a drunk pirate around the time this late-period slab of sneering punk dropped. Lars also started dressing like a skinhead but went a bit too hard on the sweater vests and ended up looking more like a biker who found Christianity in jail. Their fashion choices aside, the hooks are catchy but there are few tunes that can go toe-to-toe with their best material.
I once shook Tim Armstrong’s hand. I was 20 years old and seeing Madness perform at Coachella. He had played the same weekend in the backing band for reggae legend Jimmy Cliff. At some point between a bunch of two-tone ska classics, Tim and his entourage cut in front of me. I blurted out “Yo, Tim. Nice set!” and extended my cherubic hand. He firmly grasped it, looked me dead in the eyes and softly said “It’s good to see you.” This experience was more memorable than most of the songs on this record, though it’s definitely their second-best album with an ellipsis in the title!
The debut albums from most punk bands feature incoherent songwriting and dumpster-quality production. Rancid on the other hand featured two members who’d already released a punk classic before they barely had hair on their chest in Operation Ivy’s Energy. Released as a lean Lars-less power trio, the album features the sticky hooks that would become the band’s trademark, but many of them are sung by bassist Matt Freeman, a man who sounds more like a lawn mower than a human being.
Though this is a record you may see at the bottom of a lot of fans’ lists, it’s fair to say it’s become underrated with time. The hooky “East Bay Night” may be the strongest opener of their career, and the Jamaican-influenced songs rival their best from older albums. “I Ain’t Worried” is a spooky ska moonstomper featuring a squealing organ, and “That’s Just The Way It Is Now” is some of the best punky whiteboy reggae you’ll hear this side of The Clash. There’s a country song, a psychobilly song, and though not all of the experiments work, they’re a lot of fun. It does lose points for the lyric “She’s my honky tonk girl,” though.
I’ll say it. “Let’s Go” is overrated. Sure “Radio” and “Salvation” are two of their best songs, but at 23 tracks and lacking some of the genre experiments that would add variety to later albums, this thing is a bit of a slog to get all of the way through. Despite the bloat, it’s packed with memorable melodies and features the debut of guitarist/vocalist/face-tattoo-pioneer Lars Fredricksen. His tuneful rasp compliments Tim’s quasi-British marble-mouthed ramblings beautifully, introducing the vocal one-two-punch we know today.
Apparently nobody was more angry about the ’90s coming to a close than Rancid. They were seemingly so angry they couldn’t even bother to come up with a title for this record. Of its 22 songs, only five of them break the two-minute barrier. Not only are the ska songs gone, but their trademark choruses are also largely replaced by incessant screaming. And you know what? It’s kind of awesome. If there’s an alternate universe where Tim and Matt started a hardcore band after Operation Ivy and exclusively played in German squats, it would sound like this.
Much like their idols The Clash did with “Sandinista,” the Rancid lads went global on their fourth album. However, unlike “Sandinista,” “Life Won’t Wait” is enjoyable to listen to all the way through. Fans who are more put off by Rancid’s Caribbean leanings are probably going to hate this thing, but if you love some ska and reggae with your punk you can’t do much better than cameos from Buju Banton, The Specials, The Slackers, The Bosstones, and more. Despite its hour-long runtime, it never stops being interesting. It may not have a hit single but it does have songs with harmonica, steel drums, and glockenspiel.
Hell hath no fury like a recently divorced Tim Armstrong. Turns out the guy can write the shit out of a song when he’s heartbroken. He also got weirdly jacked. Considered by some punker-than-thou fans to be their sellout album (they got major label distribution for it), this album catapulted the gang back into the spotlight on the back of uber-poppy single “Fall Back Down” and its music video featuring Kelly Osbourne and the Good Charlotte twin that married Cameron Fuckin’ Diaz. The LP features their strangest song, “Arrested in Shanghai.” Is it hip-hop? Post-punk? New wave? Who knows!? The record also features a charming cameo from Skinhead Rob, a man who’s probably really sick of explaining his nickname by this point.
Seriously, what else was going to be number one? You might be pissed off that “Let’s Go” is so low, and while I can be a bit of a contrarian, I also have functioning ears. This album is an indisputable classic. If the album just abruptly ended after the bass solo in “Maxwell Murder” it would still probably crack the top five. If I could make one pedantic complaint, it’s that it maybe loses a little bit of steam after “Old Friend” but that’s more a testament to how absolutely incredible every song is up to that point. I just listened to it three times in a row and booked a spiderweb scalp tattoo. The power of those Tim Armstrong choruses, man.
