The Short List: The Week's Recommended Shows

Thunderbird Motel ~ Wednesday, May 27

Thunderbird Motel plays the kind of blues-inspired, rootsy rock that once monopolized your father's teenage record collection. If this band had existed 30 years ago, your dad would have been hanging out in his best friend's Midwestern basement sort of stoned, trying to cue up his record player to play "Witchy Ways," a down-and-dirty track off TM's soon-to-be released album. When the song finally started, that smoky basement would have been filled with Who-inspired bass lines, Steve Miller Band–style guitars, and throaty vocals belting out lyrics like "Let me pour some funk on you!" It's the sort of garage rock that sounds like it actually was written in someone's garage. But to say TM is simply a '70s throwback band would be shortsighted: The band hails from Seattle, after all, and there are slight tinges of grunge in TM's heavy guitars and drums. There's just a hint of '90s alternative rock, too: The lead singer—identified as "Captain Morgan" on the band's MySpace page—sounds a little bit like Scott Weiland on songs like "Fire and Water." It's the perfect formula for out-of-control, sweaty rock music—and there ain't nothing wrong with that. With the Ironclads, the Magic Mirrors. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. 9 p.m. $7.PAIGE RICHMOND

The Devil Makes Three ~ Thursday, May 28

If you think the use of banjos, musical saw, slide guitar, and upright bass is enough to consign the Devil Makes Three to the creaky realm of nostalgia, give a listen to the trio's new third album, Do Wrong Right, which took the top slot on Billboard's bluegrass chart. Equipped with a dark and rascally wit, singer Pete Bernhard conjures a skeletal crack-addict mother within the album's first 30 seconds and proceeds to romanticize hard drinking with a wink and a grin on "Gracefully Facedown." Hailing from Santa Cruz, California, of all places, the off-kilter outfit made a name for itself by pairing a reverently old-world sound with downright irreverent lyrics. Touring through the summer, the Devil Makes Three will be pushing Do Wrong Right until autumn, when Bernhard will release his second solo platter. Remember: Any bluegrass band with a live album is worth beholding firsthand. With Hillstomp. The Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave., 441-7416. 8 p.m. $15. DOUG WALLEN

Final Spins ~ Thursday, May 28

Hold on to your hearts, kids, because tonight's bill is chock full of music made to make and fall in love to.It's all too easy to get swept up in the pretty pinings of the fabulously melodic Final Spins, who are celebrating the release of their debut album, This Is Then, That Was Now, tonight. Fronted by former Throw Me the Statue member Joe Syverson, their approach is pure power pop, but they sound more like a slightly twanged-up affair between Built to Spill and Magnetic Fields, making for a swooningly memorable first-kiss soundtrack. Supporting band Battle Hymns comes off like the audiotastic love children of a short and stormy marriage between Smog and Interpol (performed by the Reverend Jay Farrar), and may cause you to call that certain ex and bemoan your relationship's tragic end. The most potently romantic danger, however, may be that of Arthur and Yu's Grant Olsen, whose dreamy music is like a trip to the Hazlewood Underground.His music's heart-melting magic, combined with a bottle of champagne, the right partner, and a rainy afternoon, actually got me pregnant. Don't say you haven't been warned. Tractor Tavern, 5213 Ballard Ave. N.W., 789-3599. 9 p.m. $7.MA'CHELL DUMA LAVASSAR

Chain and the Gang ~ Friday, May 29

Chain and the Gang is the latest incarnation of musical brilliance from D.C. rabble-rouser Ian Svenonius—part Prince, part Iggy, part Chomsky, part Andy Kaufman—who's previously bestowed upon the world such deliciously caustic, sonically arresting bands as Nation of Ulysses, the Make-Up, and Scene Creamers/Weird War. Svenonius has been called "a Marxist version of Stephen Colbert" for the anti-authoritarian, anti-bourgeoisie, conspiracy-theorist rhetoric and ideology he barks in songs and interviews—and commits to print in such fascinating tomes as his recent essay collection, The Psychic Soviet—that blurs the line between righteous indignation and pure satire/parody (like Kaufman, it's virtually impossible to tell when he's dead serious or pulling your leg). Whether or not Svenonius' provocative sociopolitical stance makes you think "Yeah, yeah! Down with the Man!" or makes you want to punch him square in the face, there's simply no denying the power and entertainment of C&tG's blend of jailhouse blues, trash punk, funk, and soul. With Hive Dwellers, Wallpaper. Vera Project, Seattle Center, Warren Avenue North and Republican Street, 956-8372. 7:30 p.m. $9. All ages. MICHAEL ALAN GOLDBERG

Cotton Jones ~ Friday, May 29

Seattle dwellers new to Michael Nau might find Maryland band Cotton Jones sounds a little like the Dutchess and the Duke's East Coast–dwelling country cousin. Both bands rely on male-female duets—in Cotton Jones, the voices belong to former Page France frontman Nau and Whitney McGraw—and like the Dutchess and the Duke, Cotton Jones masters that gritty '60s pop aesthetic. Paranoid Cocoon, Cotton Jones' debut (Suicide Squeeze), is a summery piece of roots pleasantry that showcases Nau's songwriting as well as the popular Page France once did—if not better. Last year, Nau laid it to rest to focus on Cotton Jones full-time, and what was once a side project effectively replaced Page France in Suicide Squeeze's stable. But Page France fans shouldn't despair, because Cotton Jones doesn't deviate too far from the folk songwriting Nau's known for. And since this folk revival we're experiencing doesn't appear to be slowing down, there's plenty of time for Cotton Jones' music to worm its way into the hearts of all those West Coast hippies' children. With Lightning Dust. Triple Door Mainstage, 216 Union St., 838-4333. 9:30 p.m. $12.SARA BRICKNER