Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, bassist Eric Judy, and guitarist Dann Gallucci. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About, their lineup has centered around Brock, Green and Judy. Guitarist Johnny Marr (formerly of The Smiths) joined the band in May 2006, along with percussionist Joe Plummer (formerly of the Black Heart Procession) and multi-instrumentalist Tom Peloso, to work on the album We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank. Since being signed to Sony's Epic Records in 2000, the band has attained significant popular success. Elements of Modest Mouse's early sound have been likened to or inspired by that of Pixies, Built to Spill, and numerous other alternative rock bands. Their name derives from a passage from the Virginia Woolf story "The Mark on the Wall" which reads "...and very frequent even in the minds of modest, mouse-coloured people..." In 1994, Brock, Green, John Wickhart, and Dann Gallucci recorded their debut EP, Blue Cadet-3, Do You Connect?, at Calvin Johnson's Dub Narcotic Studios, which was then released on K Records. Then followed a single with Sub Pop that was recorded by Steve Wold (now better known as bluesman Seasick Steve) at Moon Studios. During this time, Modest Mouse also recorded their would-be debut album Sad Sappy Sucker, but constant delays caused the album to be shelved and forgotten (it was officially released in 2001). After moving to Up Records, temporarily losing guitarist Dann Gallucci, Modest Mouse put out several releases recorded at Moon Studios, including 1996's This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About. This double LP was produced and recorded by Steve Wold (at this time Wold was a member of the band as well). The next offering was Interstate 8, also produced by Wold. 1997's The Lonesome Crowded West, (also recorded at Moon Studios, by Scott Swayze) turned out to be the band's breakthrough album. The Lonesome Crowded West gained the band a cult following, and is now widely considered to be one of the defining albums of mid-90s indie rock. Prior to the release, the band had recorded the EP The Fruit That Ate Itself. In 1999, Up Records released a singles and rarities collection entitled Building Nothing Out of Something, which included the entirety of Interstate 8 except for the songs "Edit the Sad Parts" and "Buttons to Push the Buttons”. In 2003, Green quit the band after suffering a nervous breakdown; the official word was that he was quitting to work with his side project, Vells. The same year, he and bassist Eric Judy appeared on Adam Forkner's debut solo album, VVRSSNN. Green was replaced with two new members, drummer Benjamin Weikel (who also drummed for The Helio Sequence, as well as playing keyboard) and guitarist Dann Gallucci (who had been a member of Modest Mouse previously, and appears on Sad Sappy Sucker). On April 6, 2004, Modest Mouse released their fourth album, the platinum-selling Good News for People Who Love Bad News, which scored two hits with "Float On" and "Ocean Breathes Salty" (both of which they performed on Saturday Night Live on November 13, 2004[7]). Later that year, Green returned to the band, and Weikel returned to drumming exclusively for The Helio Sequence. Gallucci left the band in August. In 2004 the band also curated an edition of the All Tomorrow's Parties festival.