Nada Surf

Three important rules for being past your commercial prime—tour behind a solid album, remind your fans that you once charted in the U.K., and don't get too high on your horse to play the hit everyone is there to hear. Nada Surf is a "them's the breaks" kind of band—a trio of talented slack-rockers who had the misfortune of crafting a single so monolithic that all their more sophisticated efforts still cower in its shadow. Since soldiering through the nuclear winter generated by "Popular," there has been a reverse proportion between their crowd size and their critical acclaim, with this year's Lucky being just the latest of their well-reviewed releases to be ignored by the big-watt radio stations that put them on the map.
Thu., April 3, 6 p.m., 2008