15. Modest Mouse Is A Unique Butterfly

Some people just can't get their heads around Modest Mouse. And that's understandable. They're the kind of oddity that defies genre boundaries and crafts idiosyncratic songs that, at times, seem like they're trying to be uninviting on purpose. Modest Mouse wasn't supposed to be a commercially successful rock band. That kind of mainstream recognition just didn't happen to bands like this, because bands like this are way too off-kilter to make it onto the popular airwaves. Yet, through a combination of persistence and luck, they've found themselves routinely flirting with commercial success over the years. During that time they've maintained a steady fanbase, a rarity for an oddball indie band that suddenly exploded onto the scene after already having amassed a huge collection of songs that fans of lo-fi indie rock would give their left arm for. They gained exposure, lost band members, added new layers, took an unintentional hiatus, and still came out the other side as the Modest Mouse we all know and love. There's no band quite like this band of immensely talented crackpots. And for that, we should be eternally thankful. So let's show our appreciation by celebrating all of the things that only Modest Mouse fans (hello there!) will fully comprehend.Truly, is there any band that sounds like Modest Mouse? When they first came out, people were quick to call them a Built to Spill clone. Others cited the obvious influences of Pavement and The Pixies. And while it's not wrong to see some similarities among those bands, there hasn't been a band in the mold of Modest Mouse. Ever. Granted, now that they've streamlined their sound a little bit, certain acts have tried to capture that MM sound in a bottle. Some, like Wolf Parade, have even done a decent job of it. (Isaac Brock is actually the one who signed them to Sub Pop, back when that was still a thing he did.) But dammit, there will never be another Modest Mouse. Speaking of which...