Most solo albums serve as an outlet for an artist to move beyond the confines of their band. While that’s partially true in this case, Ugly Casanova really seems to be Modest Mouse frontman Issac Brock’s way of playing the music his band played before their major-label deal with Epic, while still keeping his record deal. As always, Brock’s alterna-hick vocals range from intimate whispers to jagged rants and climax at spastic fits. And this time, his new supporting cast (John Orth, Tim Rutili, Paul Jenkins and Brian Deck) impressively shares vocal duties and introduces inventive textures to every song. “Spilled Milk Factory” takes a chill-out, electronica beat, adds a mellow jazz organ, banjo, some punchy strings and ends up sounding like a soulful backwoods stomp that would have fit perfectly on Beck’s “Odelay.” “Diamonds on the Face of Evil” places a wicked, acoustic guitar melody, clarinet and haunting chants over a chain-gang-march. And it goes on from there: tribal electro-funk, spacey trips, sweet country folk, and, of course, brooding and disturbing reflections. “The parasites are excited when you’re dead/ Eyes bulging, entering your head/And all your thoughts, they rot.” (“Parasites”) is a classic Brock observation. And in typical Modest Mouse fashion, the line’s repeated until it’s ingrained in your head. That kind of repetition is prevalent on Sharpen Your Teeth, and has always been Modest Mouse’s biggest flaw. Even the wildest and most creative ideas can start to fizzle when they fail to progress. But this characteristic has never seemed to be a problem for long-time fans of the group – they loved the looseness of their first albums and resented the refinement and progression of their major-label debut The Moon and Antarctica. All should love Ugly Casanova for his courage, but beware of the ruts.

- Dave Powers
(As posted 5/16/02 on 3wk.com)