One great part about the CD’s decline in the sales department: A lot of artists who once had no chance in hell have a shot at topping the Billboard 200. Case in point, elder-indie-statesmen-turned-mainstream-staples Modest Mouse’s latest long-player We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank debuted at number one on the Billboard list, moving 129,000 copies in the album’s first week. Isaac Brock and company edged out a plethora of more pop-suitable acts to take the crown, beating out Joss Stone, Fall Out Boy and Chris Daughtry.

Most would credit Modest Mouse’s chart-topping success to the Ought-exclusive theme of indie music crossing into the mainstream with great results. Problem is, the indie-to-mainstream trend really was never really prevalent in the first place, as bands like Franz Ferdinand and Bloc Party were just great-sounding rock bands who appealed to both underground and mainstream sonic tastes at the right time. Two other recent indie-loved artists who made strides on the charts, The Shins and Arcade Fire, sprung out of obscurity quickly, The Shins via Natalie Portman’s headphones and Arcade Fire from immense internet hype. Lupe Fiasco does the exact same thing, but nobody is claiming the charts are being conquered by underground rap.

Nobody listening exclusively to the radio and watching MTV rush out to buy Built to Spill or Arab Strap albums. A real indie-revolution on the mainstream would see beloved underground acts finally hit the big time, beloved acts like The Dismemberment Plan and Fugazi getting equal play as Panic! At the Disco or Justin Timberlake.

So, until Deerhunter share the spotlight with Dashboard Confessional, Modest Mouse’s rags-to-riches tale is less right timing and more hard-work rewarded. Isaac Brock’s crew worked a decade before getting mainstream attention with 2004’s “Float On.” Before releasing the sunshiney song that catapulted them into frequent VH1 play, Modest Mouse existed in relative obscurity, releasing four albums and various EP’s to little fanfare but much critical praise. The group chugged along, releasing enough great material to land a spot on a major label and polish their sound, and then focus on crafting an awesome radio-hit. Modest Mouse are the perfect manifestation of the American music dream: A bunch of friends from middle-of-nowhere town form a band, toil away making amazing rock albums and eventually end up being mainstream favorites covered by even the detestable American Idol crew.

We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank’s chart-topping triumph reminds us even the most hipster-beloved bands can break through to the pop-wonderland of mainstream music and thrive. Plus, “Dashboard” sounds a lot better than whatever crap John Mayer is singing about.