Float On (Modest Mouse song)

"Float On" is a song by American rock band Modest Mouse, released on March 8, 2004, as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Good News for People Who Love Bad News (2004). The song topped the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Rock Song in 2005. The music video is portrayed in the style of a pop-up book with the band wearing turn of the century style clothing and in an underwater scene with flotsam suits.

"Float On"
Single by Modest Mouse
from the album Good News for People Who Love Bad News
B-side	"I've Got It All (Most)"
Released	March 8, 2004 (2004-03-08)
Genre	Indie rock[1] indie pop[2] alternative rock[3]
Length	3:28
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Isaac Brock Dann Gallucci Eric Judy Benjamin Weikel
Producer(s)	Dennis Herring
Modest Mouse singles chronology
"Heart Cooks Brain" (1999) "Float On" (2004) "Ocean Breathes Salty" (2004)
Music video
"Float On" on YouTube

Background and composition

Asked about the song in an interview with The A.V. Club, Brock said that he consciously intended to write something that felt more positive than some of his previous work:

It was a completely conscious thing. I was just kind of fed up with how bad shit had been going, and how dark everything was, with bad news coming from everywhere. Our president George W. Bush is just a fucking daily dose of bad news! Then you've got the well-intentioned scientists telling us that everything is fucked. I just want to feel good for a day.

— Isaac Brock, The A.V. Club, ^[4]

The final few notes of "The World at Large" lead into the opening notes of "Float On".

Release and reception

The song was released to alternative radio on March 8, 2004,^[5] and was the first Modest Mouse song to gain mainstream popularity. Nearly six months after its release, it became the band's first No. 1 hit on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart.^[6] It debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 70 and peaked at No. 68.^[7] In Australia, the song peaked at No. 94 and was ranked No. 11 on Triple J's Hottest 100 of 2004.^[8][9] In 2013, when Triple J created a new list of the Hottest 100 songs of the past 20 years, Float On appeared at No. 45.^[10] In July 2009, it was also voted in at No. 94 in the Triple J Hottest 100 of All Time.^[11] In December 2009, Rolling Stone named it the 39th greatest song of the 2000s.^[12] NME ranked it at No. 351 on their list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2014.^[13] At the 47th Annual Grammy Awards in 2005, "Float On" was nominated for Best Rock Song, losing to U2's "Vertigo".^[14][15]

Track listings

US 7-inch and CD single[16][17] "Float On" – 3:28 "I've Got It All (Most)" – 3:06 Australian CD single[18] "Float On" – 3:28 "I've Got It All (Most)" – 3:06 "The Good Times Are Killing Me" (alternative mix version) – 4:11 "Bukowski" (Congleton/Godbey remix) – 4:14 UK 7-inch single[19] A. "Float On" B. "Bukowski" (Congleton/Godbey remix)

UK CD single[20] "Float On" – 3:28 "I've Got It All (Most)" – 3:06 "The Good Times Are Killing Me" (alternative mix version) – 4:11 "Float On" (video) – 3:32 European maxi-CD single[21] "Float On" – 3:28 "I've Got It All (Most)" – 3:06 "The Good Times Are Killing Me" (alternative mix version) – 4:11 "Bukowski" (Congleton/Godbey remix) – 4:14 "Float On" (video)

Personnel

• Isaac Brock – vocals, lead guitar
• Eric Judy – bass, backing vocals
• Dann Gallucci – rhythm guitar, keyboards, drum loops, backing vocals
• Benjamin Weikel – drums, percussion

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2004) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[8] 94 Canada Rock Top 30 (Radio & Records)[22] 24 UK Singles (OCC)[23] 46 US Billboard Hot 100[7] 68 US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[24] 4 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[6] 1 US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[25] 32

Year-end charts Chart (2004) Position US Modern Rock Tracks (Billboard)[26] 12 US Triple-A (Billboard)[27] 40

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[28]	3× Platinum	240,000‡
New Zealand (RMNZ)[29]	Gold	15,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[30]	Silver	200,000‡
United States (RIAA)[31]	5× Platinum	5,000,000‡
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	March 8, 2004	Alternative radio	Epic	[5]
	April 26, 2004	Triple A radio		[32]
	June 14, 2004	Contemporary hit radio		[33]
United Kingdom	July 12, 2004	CD		[34]
Australia	September 13, 2004			[35]

Covers

The song was covered by Ben Lee, whose version can be heard on the soundtrack for the 2006 film John Tucker Must Die.^[36] It was also covered by Mark Kozelek and Goldspot, whose version later appeared on the television series The O.C.^[37]