Nada Surf, the Builders & the Butchers

There aren’t many bands whose music makes a perfect accompaniment to brooding, long solo car rides, and making out. But then there’s Nada Surf. For those of you who still think of 1996’s “Popular” when you think of them, that’s your own damn fault. Nada Surf has been writing some of the sweetest indie pop this side of Barsuk over the past ten years, most notably their 2002 masterpiece, Let Go. The breakthroughs on their latest, Lucky, full of velvety, drifting, power pop melodies, are not to be missed: “Here Goes Something.” Yes, it does. Or “Beautiful Beat,” a soothing, harmony-laden tribute to the power of music’s ability to lift that, yes, lifts! Vis-a-vis the power of music itself! On Thursday, Sea Wolf opens; on Friday (sold out), The Builders and the Butchers. Showbox at the Market. 1426 First Ave., 628-3151, www.ticketmaster.com. $16-$18. All ages. Doors at 8 p.m. Thurs., March 27-Fri., March 28.KARLA STARR
Fri., March 28, 8 p.m., 2008