Seems like it’s been awhile since I’ve cut up one of these sessions, but there’s no better reason to pick up the habit again than a Nada Surf appearance on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic.

The new record, Lucky, has crept up on me. Certainly it’s what you’d expect from a Nada Surf album: catchy melodies with sing-along choruses. But the band’s unabashed positive spirit comes through stronger than ever; hell, singer Matthew Caws (or, at least, I’m assuming it’s Caws) writes a treatise on the word “lucky” in the liner notes. It’s either the hokiest thing you’ve ever read or the most uplifting. It all depends on your outlook, and I suppose that’s the point the band is trying to get across on this record: Are you appreciative of what you have or do you take it for granted?

At the very least, we can be thankful the band made exquisite use of liner notes, a lost art in our digital world.

Remember: Nada Surf and Sea Wolf at the Clubhouse in Tempe on March 17 (tickets).

A quick note about this set: See These Bones, the final song they played, faded out before conclusion, so I didn’t include it here. You might try streaming this performance (with interview) at KCRW Web site. (I got it from the podcast.)

Nada Surf on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic, 2/5/08:

1. Whose Authority.
2. Weightless.
3. Ice on the Wing.
4. I Like What You Say.
5. Are You Lightning?
6. Here Goes Something.
7. Beautiful Beat.

Anti sent out a release about Tim Fite’s upcoming release, Fair Ain’t Fair (more below), which gave me good reason to poke around his MySpace page.

Lo and behold, Fite is offering a download of Out on the Line, a B-side to a 7-inch released in the UK that I actually found at Academy Records in Brooklyn in September for $2. (white vinyl; A-side is No Good Here [mp3].)

Small detail: On the 7-inch, the song is called On the Line; Fite lists it as Out on the Line on his MySpace page. Either way, it’s a downer of an acoustic track, a bit out of the ordinary for the eccentric Fite (remember his I Used to Love H.E.R. entry?).

• Tim Fite | Out on the Line

As for that new record, Fair Ain’t Fair – the proper follow-up to 2005’s Gone Ain’t Gone – is due out May 6. Fite earned plenty of praise for his free 2007 album Over the Counter Culture (previous post), a send-up of/commentary on commercial rap culture. (You can download it here.) So it’s not like we haven’t heard from the man in three years.

Tracklisting for Fair Ain’t Fair:
1. Roots Of A Tree.
2. Trouble.
3. The Barber.
4. Big Mistake.
5. Inside Man.
6. Rats And Rags.
7. Yesterday’s Garden.
8. Thought I Was A Gun.
9. The Names Of All The Animals.
10. Motorcade.
11. More Clothes.
12. Harriet Tubman.
13. My Hands.
14. Heaven Is War.
15. Sing Along.
16. Line By Line.

UK’s Editors make their way to Tempe for a show at Marquee Theatre in Tempe with Hot Hot Heat and Louis XIV on Tuesday night. (Buy tickets.)

I interviewed bassist Russell Leetch and wrote a bit about it here. Favorite quote, after I asked him how critics differ in England and the U.S.: “We always get totally mixed reviews. We’re not one of those bands people wet themselves over like the Arcade Fire or LCD Soundsystem.”

Also, here’s a flier for the March 8 show I’m putting on with Source Victoria and Birdmonster, among others. Come on out, won’t you? (Click for larger image.)

Elsewhere:

Go to Aquarium Drunkard for an acoustic session with Radar Bros. frontman Jim Putnam.

Mr. Mammoth has a new Cadence Weapon track, Juliann Wilding.

I discovered Phoenix boys The Format are breaking up at I Am Fuel, You Are Friends. Drag.

On the topic of Phoenix, Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World contributed to a song by Belgian electronic artist Styrofoam. Stream My Next Mistake at Styrofoam’s MySpace page.

Lastly, head over to Macktronic for some Cool Kids.

I announced this show, which I’m helping curate, previously, but the venue has moved. We are official now: Source Victoria, Birdmonster and Traindead on March 8 at Yucca Tap Room in Tempe. No cover (as always at Yucca). 21 and over. Remember, Yucca is a cash-only bar.

Bring your friends. And their friends.

• Birdmonster | Cause You Can
• Birdmonster | Spaceman
• Source Victoria | Heartless Boy (at MySpace page)

I love Stinkweeds. It’s the one record store in town that will sell albums on Monday that are due out Tuesday.

Such was the case yesterday when I bought the new Nada Surf album, Lucky. Even better, it came with a four-song bonus disc: Whose Authority (acoustic); I Like What You Say (acoustic); I Wanna Take You Home (feat. Juliana Hatfield) and Everyone’s On Tour. See? There really are benefits of still buying a CD (get it at Barsuk). And I haven’t even devoured what looks to be an intriguing set of liner notes.

Remember: Nada Surf at the Clubhouse on March 17 (via Stateside Presents). That same night is Born Ruffians and Cadence Weapon at Rhythm Room and Living Legends at the Brickhouse. Good lord! But now I see Sea Wolf is opening for Nada Surf, which could tip the scales in the favor of that show. You really can’t go wrong at any of them.

• Nada Surf | I Like What You Say (acoustic)
• Nada Surf | See These Bones

Check out the Nada Surf ecard, which has the Whose Authority video and in-studio clips.

UPDATE of the utmost importance!:
Happy 5th birthday to my niece Quinn! I can’t believe it. She was pictured on this blog in 2005, when she was 2. Of course, she’s not reading this (but her dad might be). Time flies, and I cannot believe Niece No. 1 is already 5 years old (and the big sister of two more beautiful girls). I am sure that big things await Quinn, who was a major reason I moved back to Phoenix (from Texas) in 2002 — and I’m so glad I did. Happy birthday, Quinn-o!

Details are sketchy on this one. But the guys at Faux Show appear to be bringing Diplo to Phoenix on March 1.

It’s an 18-and-over show at some venue called Area, which is new to me. The venue’s MySpace page says Area is “a high-end, state-of-the-art industrial event space.” But they fail to include, you know, an address and stuff.