Grade: B+ | The biggest surprise of Modest Mouse’s breakthrough success is not that it came a decade into the group’s career, nor is it that a conglomerate like Epic Records stuck by the Washington natives despite poor sales of the band’s label debut a few years earlier. The most refreshing revelation about “Good News for People Who Love Bad News” is that the success came with little change to the band’s trademark sound.

By not compromising any of his wavering yelps or lurking lisps, front man Isaac Brock parlayed his neurotic quirks into almost 2 million album sales, which has given him the freedom to stay unchanged once again. In fact, those challengingly bizarre shouts and jagged melodies are now not just embraced but expected by the band’s newly supportive label and legion of fresh-faced fans.

But on the follow-up, the ever-moody Brock seems unphased by the looming pressures of following a record successful enough that “American Idol” contestants karaoked its biggest hits. So much so, that he’s made all the right alterations to assure “We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank” doesn’t sound too similar to his previous output – like a collection of B-sides from those 2004 recording sessions.

Now accompanying the band’s already-chiming guitars is legendary Smiths guitarist, Johnny Marr. While it might seem strange that the guitarist for the largest selling English act of the 1980s joined a band that meddled in semi-obscurity for the bulk of the 1990s, both Brock and Marr have said the pairing is more natural than it appears. And what began as a Marr guest spot on a single track morphed into his role as a full-time member and collaborator with the Seattle group.

Yet, more than the icon’s guitar sound (which is still as unmistakable today as it was when he shared the Wembley Stadium-esque stages with Morrissey and company), “We Were Dead” benefits from Shins front man James Mercer, who lends his delicately high voice for the record’s backing vocals. The combination of Mercer’s soft tenor and Brock’s gruff snarl are a sweet-and-sour match that cancel each other out and layer each tune with a grandiose ambiance.

Even if “We Were Dead” doesn’t have as many truly great songs as its predecessor, it’s not supposed to. “Good News” was the result of the sudden death of Brock’s brother, and the songwriter didn’t have ample time to assess the life-changing moment before calculating a response. The inspiration for this record has been gradual – his three-year rise to stardom – and has allowed Brock plenty of room to grow and weigh his emotions.

And the results are good news for people who loved “Good News.”