Eric Judy
Encyclopedia
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
ist, background vocalist, and founding member of the indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse
Modest Mouse is an American indie rock band formed in 1993 in Issaquah, Washington, by singer/lyricist/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. They are based in Portland, Oregon. Since their 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think...
. He has a wife and two children, and resides in Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
.
After meeting, Judy, Isaac Brock
Isaac Brock (musician)
Isaac Brock is the lead singer, guitarist, banjoist, and songwriter for the American indie rock band Modest Mouse, as well as his side project band, Ugly Casanova...
and Jeremiah Green
Jeremiah Green
Jeremiah Martin Green is a founding member and drummer of the indie rock band Modest Mouse from 1993 to March 2003, and again from July 2004....
began jamming in a provisional home next to Brock's mother's trailer. They met when Brock approached Judy, who was wearing an Econochrist
Econochrist
Econochrist was a political hardcore punk band active in the late eighties and early nineties. They moved from Arkansas to the San Francisco Bay Area to become part of the punk music scene there...
shirt, and said "Econochrist sucks". Judy moved north and the three were unable to continue making music. However, Brock and Judy sent phone messages to each other with song ideas and guitar riffs. The three were reunited when Judy moved back, and went on to form Modest Mouse.
On the album The Moon & Antarctica
The Moon & Antarctica
-2004 re-release bonus tracks:Isaac Brock was dissatisfied with the final mix and the album artwork for The Moon & Antarctica following its original 2000 release....
, producer Brian Deck
Brian Deck
Brian Deck is an American music producer and member of band Red Red Meat. He co-founded Idful Studios in 1988. Since becoming a full time producer, Deck has worked with bands and artists including Modest Mouse, Iron & Wine, Califone, All Smiles, Fruit Bats , Gomez, The Grates, Holopaw, Baby & Hide,...
used Judy's direction at various times as guidance for additional sonic sounds and fills. Onstage, Judy plays Fender and Rickenbacker
Rickenbacker
Rickenbacker International Corporation, also known as Rickenbacker, is an electric and bass guitar manufacturer based in Santa Ana, California...
bass guitars, as well as the double bass
Double bass
The double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
. He also plays the pump organ and the acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
on Good News for People Who Love Bad News
Good News for People Who Love Bad News
Good News for People Who Love Bad News is the fourth full-length album recorded by indie rock band Modest Mouse.The album was released by Epic Records on April 6, 2004 on both CD and 180g/m² vinyl record. It was rereleased on DualDisc on October 11, 2005...
. Judy plays guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
on "The World at Large", "Bukowski", and "Satin in a Coffin", with Tom Peloso playing upright bass on the last two of these songs. He also does some background vocals on songs like "Ocean Breathes Salty".
Judy has a five year old son, named Milo, who supplied the cooing on track twelve of Good News For People Who Love Bad News, aptly titled "Interlude (Milo)".
Kevin O'Connor of Talkdemonic
Talkdemonic
Talkdemonic is an avant-instrumental duo based in Portland, Oregon. The band consists of Kevin O'Connor and Lisa Molinaro. Talkdemonic recently signed with Isaac Brock's Glacial Pace Recordings to release their fourth record in Fall 2011.- History :...
reported that Eric Judy had permanently left Modest Mouse after his absence from the show in Dallas, Texas on November 10, 2011.
Playing style
Judy is known for his atmospheric, sustained and yet reserved sound, which complements the often irregular and abrasive guitar work of Brock. He usually plays the middle to high ranges on his bass. He also uses a pickGuitar pick
A guitar pick is a plectrum used for guitars. A pick is generally made of one uniform material; examples include plastic, nylon, rubber, felt, tortoiseshell, wood, metal, glass, and stone...
.
In an interview with Bass Player online, Judy described his playing style: "I don't do anything that weird, but I don't think my playing is conventional. I pick the strings pretty hard, using a lot of upstrokes. I know that as a bass player I'm supposed to hold stuff down no matter what, but melody is very important to me—I tend to play high up on the neck."