Modest Mouse — Good News For People Who Love Bad News

Modest Mouse fans have been waiting patiently. While the band released an EP and a reissue of early recordings in 2001 and singer Isaac Brock — the man largely responsible for the Mouse’s distinctive sound — put out a solo album as Ugly Casanova last year, Good News is the first proper Modest Mouse album since 2000’s The Moon And Antarctica. Four years is a long hiatus, especially for a band with such a specific late-’90s indie rock sound, but MM’s new album sounds fresh while still keeping with the band’s unique character. Many, but certainly not all, of the songs are less dark than older Mouse fare, and it’s the quieter and lighter pop songs that stand out on this long album. The band also try out some different song templates, making Brock’s crazed vocal delivery less samey and grating. It’s not a masterpiece, but it is proof that Modest Mouse are still interesting and able to grow.

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