Pitchfork

Hey, remember when Modest Mouse was just that little angry band on college radio? Well, now they're that big angry band perched atop the Billboard 200.

This past week, Isaac Brock's outfit moved a not-so-modest 129,000 units of its fifth full-length proper, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, according to Billboard.com-- enough to best Joss Stone and some "American Idol" pan-flasher for the chart crown. This debut trumps that of 2004 LP Good News for People Who Love Bad News as well, which opened at 19 with paltry sales of 68,000.

Modest Mouse's no. 1 of course dashes James Murphy's hopes of copping the top spot. LCD Soundsystem's Sound of Silver narrowly missed the Top 40 in its first week, landing at a respectable 46. That's still cause to crack open the bubbly, as it marks LCD's first Billboard 200 appearance.

The much-discussed decline in album sales-- and, perhaps, a slight de-homogenization of listeners' tastes-- has worked wonders for indie-label-signed and indie-sounding bands hoping for chart placement: both the Shins (Sub Pop) and Arcade Fire (Merge) scored impressive number two first-week debuts. Your next mission, indie-ites? Help the next Wolf Eyes LP go platinum.

Anyhow, give Isaac and (good luck charm?) Johnny Marr a hearty pat on the back as they hit the road next month.

Modest Mouse dates:

04-15 Seattle, WA - Paramount Theatre
04-16 Vancouver, British Columbia - Pacific Coliseum
04-20 Minneapolis, MN - Orpheum Theatre
04-21 Minneapolis, MN - Orpheum Theatre
04-22 Chicago, IL - Auditorium Theatre
04-26 Rochester, NY - Main Street Armory *
04-27 Boston, MA - Orpheum Theatre
04-29 New York, NY - The United Palace
04-30 New York, NY - The United Palace
05-02 Providence, RI - Lupo's Heartbreak Hotel
05-03 Philadelphia, PA - Electric Factory
05-04 Greensboro, NC - Special Events Center
05-05 Atlanta, GA - Masquerade Music Park
05-06 Birmingham, AL - BJCC Arena Concert Hall
05-08 New Orleans, LA - House of Blues
05-09 Austin, TX - The Backyard
05-10 Grand Prairie, TX - Nokia Live
05-12 Mesa, AZ - Mesa Amphitheater
05-13 Los Angeles, CA - greek Theatre
05-14 San Diego, CA - Cox Arena at San Diego State University
05-16 San Jose, CA - San Jose State University
05-20 Somerset, England - Butlins Minehead (ATP vs. the Fans)
05-23 London, England - Royal Albert Hall
06-01 Barcelona, Spain - Primavera Sound

* with Love as Laughter