An Eraser And A Maze - Modest Mouse

By Jessica Douglass

An Eraser and a Maze by Modest Mouse marks a flawed but enjoyable return to form for the band. 

Modest Mouse is a band that has seemingly lost its way over the years; their past few albums are by far their weakest work. While Golden Casket has a couple passable tracks, the only element of the record that made it recognizable as a Modest Mouse record was Isaac Brock’s voice. Fortunately, An Eraser and a Maze is a return to form, while still establishing itself as its own project. In their first independent record since 1997, Brock’s guitar work is reminiscent of The Lonesome Crowded West and makes Modest Mouse feel like an indie rock band again, particularly on tracks like “Speak N’ Spell (Or Not)” and “Third Side of the Moon.” 

The lyricism on An Eraser and a Maze is some of their best, with an honesty and directness that hasn’t really been present in any of their earlier work. “Third Side of the Moon” and “Remember Yourself” are some of the most devastating and impactful songs on the record. “Remember Yourself,” the second track on the album, perfectly balances bleakness with hope. Lines like “It’ll get confusin’, but that’ll pass” strike a balance between directness and emotional weight, giving the song a sense of authenticity despite how stripped down the lyrics are. 

“Third Side of the Moon” is perhaps the heaviest song on the record, focusing on loss, grief and the pain of forgetting details about loved ones. The line “Well, I can't remember if your eyes were blue or green or red” is repeated (with some variation) in each verse, building a sense of dread as the song continues. Crushing lyrics such as “wish I'd paid attention to every word that you'd ever said/ But you always spoke in a whisper, and I wasn't good at listening” make “Third Side of the Moon” feel like the most vulnerable track on the album. 

The opening track, titled “Picking Dragons’ Pockets,” is perhaps the most interesting sounding song on the album thanks to its heavy production and layered instrumentation.The melancholy lead guitar, spacey synthesizer, and punchy drums crash together to create a song that crashes over the listener. Unfortunately, the rock anthem’s dense and high-energy sound isn’t explored again on the rest of the album. 

While the first few songs are incredibly strong and reminiscent of Modest Mouse’s roots, the album starts to lose direction after “Interlude.” “I Can’t Talk Right Now” and “Song About Nothing” are by far the weakest points, lacking the drive and direction of the album’s start. While the second half of An Eraser and a Maze is definitely weaker than the first, this doesn’t apply to the album’s closing track, “Impossible Somedays,” which is a fantastic conclusion to the project both sonically and lyrically. 

While An Eraser and a Maze is certainly a flawed album, its highlights generally make up for its shortcomings. In particular, “Third Side of the Moon” and “Picking Dragons’ Pockets” stand out and provide hope for the previously bleak-looking future of Modest Mouse.