Modest Mouse “Float On” released

Float On Modest Mouse

Writer(s): Isaac Brock, Dann Gallucci, Eric Judy, Benjamin Weikel (see lyrics here) Released: March 8, 2004 First Charted: April 3, 2004 Peak: 68 BB, 29 RR, 4 AA, 11 MR, 46 UK, 94 UK, 12 DF (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 5.0 US, 0.2 UK, 5.44 world (includes US + UK) Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.1 radio, 97.0 video, 495.94 streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: Singer/guitarist Isaac Brock, bassist Eric Judy, and drummer Jeremiah Green formed the rock band Modest Mouse in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington. They released their first album in 1996, but didn’t crack the Billboard album chart until 2000 with their third album. Their big commercial breakthrough, however, came with fourth album Good News for People Who Love Bad News. The double-platinum release reached #18 in the United States. The album owed much of its success to the first single, “Float On.” As the group’s first chart entry, it proved a massive success, topping the alternative rock chart and eventually reaching five million in sales. It also garnered a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Song. In 2014, New Musical Express ranked it one of the top 500 songs of all time. WK In 2009, Rolling Stone named it one of the top 100 songs of the 2000s. WK Brock sings about “backing his car into a cop’s cruiser, being scammed, and him and his partner losing their jobs on the exact same day.” FO However, it becomes what Far Out magazine’s Tim Coffman called “one of the greatest perseverance anthems of all time.” FO Songfacts.com said it “was written to reassure that everything will be all right with life.” SF Brock recognized that “all he can do is just sit back and watch as the world floats on.” FO Brock was already dealing with the loss of two close friends SF and facing the possibility of his band imploding. They questioned if they had anything of value to say. They aborted their original album effort and stated fresh. Brock made a conscious effort to write something more positive. He said he was fed up with “how dark everything was, with bad news coming from everywhere...I just want to feel good for a day.” WK It became “a statement…that it’s possible to make great art out of creative tragedy.” FO Resources: FO Far Out (4/13/2024). “The Story Behind the Song: Modest Mouse’s survival anthem ‘Float On’” by Tim Coffman SF Songfacts WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 7/6/2025.