Shilling for Nissan

that used to be one of my favorite songs, too. who'd have thought nissan listened to two dudes from issaquah, though.

I seriously want to cry. There is nothing pure in this world. I have so many wonderful memories with Modest Mouse playing the soundtrack. I'm beginning to feel the soul of their music lay elsewhere, perhaps in this elusive Graham fellow...

so i'm a little late on this - i just saw the commercial this evening but i thought i would say something anyway. there has been a lot concern about the cheapening of art but without mention of what the art is. it is more than a song, it must be. nobody seems to care when the osmonds or a rolling stone song gets used for ads. i think that modest mouse, especially their song 'gravity rides everything' conveys a sense of excitement and passion that is inconsistent with the allure it comes to represent behind a fucking minivan.

someone on the post thought that modest mouse was not in the wrong b/c their message was at least consistent. this is a good idea but i don't think the song specifically, or the their collection of music, can be listened to as music that will help sell cars. the sense of urgency, hope(lesness), and anxiety cannot be translated through a minivan commerical.

"No one really cared for it at all,
Not the gravity plan...
I wanna go back to sleep,
In the motions and the things that you say..."

I think it is very difficult to convey the sort of genuine emotion explained here - a CAR COMMERCIAL! does not seem to be a good forum for this emotion. In this sense, I think the art is directly betrayed by this sort of consumer appeal - Buy the car b/c the commercial plays great music? (and it is great music, to be sure) - anyone who might even consider admiring this music b/c of what nissan has done to it will equally betray the music of authenticity and the ideas its structure provides for.

modest mouse can do what they like with the song - it's their music - an important question is what does this commmercial mean for the music. i'm not sure i know the complete answer to this question but:

"As fruit drops, flesh, it sags,
Everything will, fall right into place.
When we die, some sink and some lay,
But at least I wont have to see you float away."

I find that Modest Mouse has neither "sold out" or compromised the integrity of their music by letting Nissan use a snippet of a song. For one thing, the minivan was not advertised as coming with a complimentary CD. The part that they used was appropriate for the feeling they're trying to sell. And if maiking sure you wake up with electricity in the AM makes you a sellout, then everyone who is mowing lawns or fixing cars is a fuckin' sellout. It's not like they're on TRL or being mass marketed. I think they have done a pretty good job being on a major label and still not allowing themselves to be whored out to every media outlet available.
One of the most respectable things about Isaac and the songs he writes is that he won't tell you what this lyric or that lyric means. It allows you to personalize it, to make it your own. That's why the movie's never as good as the book. If it's all laid out for you, your vision has been stripped and replaced with someone else's. Whatever feeling the song gives you is your own. Nissan isn't trying to sell consumers your feeling about it. And apparently, the beginning of "Gravity Rides Everything" captures the vision Nissan is trying to sell. And really, how much money do you think they got for it? That check goes through alot of hands before it gets to them, I'm sure.

I agree with Kelley and Brian. Whats wrong with some positive exposure on national tv? A friend of mine introduced me to modest moust last year and i have loved it since. Why just recently "Float On" has been the only song that i have ever heard from them on local radio stations. I think modest mouse's poplarity is blossoming, and just because someone who made a commercial has good taste and decided to use an awesome song, does not mean modest mouse is selling out. When i hear a kick ass song on a commercial that i have never heard before, i want to go "gee, that song kicked ass!! i wonder who its by? modest mouse, eh. i think i'll check out these guys and maybe buy a cd." you see, whats wrong with that. i'm not going to buy a damn minivan, geeze, some of you are over reacting a bit. its about time respected bands that make REAL music get recognized instead of the same old load of musical crap that gets shoved into our faces and plastered over the airwaves like what used to be "music" television. i miss the old mtv, i mean wheres the fuckin music?!?! real world my ass. someone shoot jessica simpson. kelsey grammer was right about what tv has turned into. off subject now, sorry. anyways, if it helps record sales and recognition, then they could play "classy plastic lumber" to push underwear for all i care, does not change the fact that i love this band. thank you.

Yeah, im completely late on this too. But anyways, Isaac did not rape anyone. It turned out that the lady who filed the charges admitted that Isaac didnt do anything. They even talk to eachother sometimes.

And besides that, who cares if they sold their music to major commercials? He said in an interview that he had to feed is DANG FAMILY! He needs to keep shoes on his little boy and pay rent. Think about it, if you had a kid and you were a rising musician you would sell your stuff to companies wouldnt you? well I sure as hell would. They have not sold out in anyway. I've been listening to these guys for years, since i was about 6 or 7. (14 now) And it just so happens that NOW people are liking their new album because it is more optimisstic. And people LOVE that kinda stuff. Even though I dont like this album as much as LCW, BNOS, This Is A long drive..., and so forth they have NOT in any way sold out.

Welcome to capitalism, you f*cking idgits. Would you rather the guy make his living at a checkout counter? The guy's a musical genius, even if he is a poltical moron.

And by the way, to those of you who think Isaac is selling out, do some reading and you will find that he has had his share of shit jobs, so he's paid his fuckin' dues to society. You go clean out the back of a meat truck for a while and then come back and call him out on his principles. And if you do, you'll be a fuckin' hypocrite.

When Isaac Brock was asked if it was a hard decision to sell his song to a commercial, he replied by saying that he doesnt consider figuring out ways to pay rent and feed his son a hard decesion. Keep in mind, he isnt exactly living in a mansion or cruising around in a hummer. He was a janitor by the time he was 10, and has worked numerous jobs even while selling cds. He grew up in a trailor home and people left food on their front door step so they could eat. He hasnt exactly has stuff handed to him for free in his life. He has also said that the stuff on the Top 40 list is some of the worst stuff he has ever heard, so its not like he is trying really hard to hit the mainstream. Most people who see the commercial dont even know who Modest Mouse is and have never even heard the song. Isaac is one of the most talented song writers out there, and i dont see him selling out anytime soon. The success he has earned is hard earned. If he would have turned down the chance to make some extra money to feed his son, just so some people on a few websites wouldnt call him a "Sellout", then that would be ridiculous and irresponsible.

Modest Mouse rocks and always will!

Accusations that Modest Mouse is now a "sell out" are utter and complete bullshit. Just because the world is finally starting to listen to good music doesn't make the band any less awesome. Isaac Brock is an absolute genius. Why is it bad that people recognize that?