THURSDAY 1/3

The Reformation, Pica Beats, Elder Mason, My Revolver

(Comet) Don't let the sadness take you over! Don't let it win! The gray air is as thick as a blanket, surrounding your whole body; it's cold, it's miserably damp, the holidays are over and the new year has begun and now we have a stretch of nothing to look forward to except rain, fog, and shitty weather not really appropriate for that new pair of Converse you got for Christmas. You could hide in your apartment and be miserable—let the weather win. OR, get yer ass to the Comet. The Reformation play rocking power pop with good vibes and a handsome lead singer to boot. The Pica Beats aren't as obviously mood-lifting, but their tight compositions of Neutral Milk Hotel–inspired orchestras are sure to make you feel warm, even if they cater slightly to a more melancholy state. And, you know, if that doesn't work, the Comet has liquor now. Maybe whiskey will help. MEGAN SELING

FRIDAY 1/4

The Animals at Night

(Easy Street, West Seattle) Graig Markel and Jeff McCallum started the Animals at Night, and their upcoming record features a bunch of indie rock stars such as Jeremiah Green of Modest Mouse, Nabil Ayers and Eric Corson of the Long Winters, Trent Moorman of Head Like a Kite (and The Stranger), and Daniel G. Harmann. But the Animals at Night aren't what you'd expect from such a lineup—they don't even have a guitar. The duo uses a slew of electronics to paint wonderfully mellow downtempo that's littered with samples from records that span decades (old soul from the 1960s to 1980s pop). The new record (featuring the all-star lineup listed above), should be out early this year. MEGAN SELING

Cadillac Radio, Thunderbird Motel, Megasapien, Wright Brothers

(Comet) Oh, if the walls of the Thunderbird Motel on Aurora Avenue could talk. Think of the incredible stories of hookers and cocaine it could tell, the tales of unmatched bravado and human frailty. It would be sacrilege then if a band decided to use the name of Seattle's landmark adultery shanty for anything other than pure, unadulterated rock and roll. Luckily, the band Thunderbird Hotel are everything you could hope from a musical incarnation of such a gritty, damnable place. They play straight-up, no-bullshit rock and roll with just the right amount of blues—the perfect soundtrack to the best night of your life, before you wake up and realize you've just ruined everything. JEFF KIRBY

SATURDAY 1/5

Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground, the Lonely H, the Lashes, Ships

(Vera Project) See Stranger Suggests, page 21, and Underage, page 47.

2nd Annual Freestyle Championships: Devin the Dude, Cool Nutz, Certified, Neema, Mr. Dog, Emmanuel, Sonny Bonoho

(Chop Suey) You couldn't ask for a much better judge of your freestyle competition than Houston rap veteran Devin the Dude. For over a dozen odd years, with the Odd Squad, Coughee Brothaz, and on his own, the Dude has been dropping cracked-up rhymes with a casual, charming flow that has made him both an underground favorite and a well-loved guest spotter for the likes of Dr. Dre, UGK, De La Soul, the Roots, and others. Devin will top off tonight's competition with a short set, but the real action will be the qualifying rounds—2 of the night's 12 contestants will be determined at Chop Suey, the rest have been chosen through weeks of competition at Tacoma's Pacific Lounge—and the freestyle battles that follow. The winner will receive $4,500 and an interview on KUBE 93. ERIC GRANDY

SUNDAY 1/6

On this day in 1994, "Nancy Kerrigan was clubbed on the right leg by an assailant under orders from figure skating rival Tonya Harding" (via Wikipedia). Also, in 1946, Syd Barrett of Pink Floyd was born.

MONDAY 1/7

Apt. #1325 Monday-Night Residency: Throw Me the Statue, Husbands, Love Your Wives; Final Spins; the Golden Isles; the Wild Types

(Chop Suey) Capitol Hill library on a late weekday morning: A graying, stubbled man gazes out of the floor-to-ceiling windows, muttering to himself, while at an adjacent table a middle-aged woman in a tattered coat flips through a magazine and glances up occasionally to say something out loud to no one, her long-nailed hand bobbing in time with her words. The hushed unquiet is eerie, somewhere between noise and silence—kind of like the music of Husbands, Love Your Wives. The one-woman project of Jamie Spiess is gentle at first, Spiess's acoustic strumming and plain-sung vocals subdued and soothing. But her lyrics detail a deep, strange world of candle-lit memories, impassioned tributes, disjointed parables, and Grimm-like imagery. Haunting, certainly, but like a faded rose, where there's beauty in both life and death. JONATHAN ZWICKEL See also Stranger Suggests, page 21.

Siberian, Welcome to the Cinema

(Viaduct Venue) From what I can gather from the songs available on their MySpace, Minnesota's Welcome to the Cinema are not completely innovative, but they are still pretty good. They have a sound that could either remind you a little bit of the Cure or of Interpol, depending on the song. Hell, I even heard a little Arcade Fire in the song "Sound of Thinking" (although they have this whole spacey synth thing happening that Arcade Fire don't). The guitars are glittery at times and the vocals can have a little postpunk sass, but more often than not, they've got a little new-wave croon to 'em. Tonight's show is in Tacoma, but it's all ages. If you're over 21 and don't wanna make the trip south, they're playing at the Comet on Sunday, but the glorious Siberian won't be joining them. MEGAN SELING

TUESDAY 1/8

On this day in 1835, the U.S. national debt was zero for the first and only time. Also, in 1976, Jenny Lewis of Rilo Kiley (and star of the 100-minute Nintendo commercial The Wizard) was born.

WEDNESDAY 1/9

Breaker Breaker, Your House or Mine, the Dating Pool

(High Dive) I am going to make a New Year's resolution for Seattle's music scene: No more repetitive band names. None. Xiu Xiu, Speaker Speaker, Patient Patient, Breaker Breaker... ENOUGH! They're all fine bands, really. And tonight's headliners, Breaker Breaker, have this sexy combo of female vocals and synth, but still, they're the last double name I'll allow. So if you're thinking of rolling with a repetitive moniker, think again, because I will ban you from this paper as a punishment. Anyway, Your House or Mine, opening for Breaker2, remind me of a punked-up version of the Trucks except they sing more about dancing and less about their vaginas. MEGAN SELING

The Nachos

(At Large) When asked if the Nachos—Seattle's most intriguing/annoying guerrilla-performance-art duo—ever hang posters to advertise headlining slots at shows they aren't invited to play, lead Casio keyboardist Helmet Nacho evades the question. "We're inspired by inspiration," he says, "2008 is going to be another groundbreaking year for us. A controversial album is in the works based on the psychology of chatrooms. In a chatroom, you can tell someone, 'Yeah, I have big biceps,' when really, you don't have big biceps. It's a front, a metaphorical mask. In the Nachos, we wear real masks." It gets deeper: Helmet's foil, D-Lab, has reportedly made an instrument out of hooking a dulcimer up to a ThighMaster. "We also sampled a bunch of bug-zapper sounds," Helmet says. Look for the Nachos—shirtless, masked, inciting awkwardness—to funk things up across the city in January. TRENT MOORMAN