Surfer Blood are angling to become the go-to cute-rock mixtape leaders of the 2010s, but they’re starting to push past the basics, too. New EP Tarot Classics isn’t quite their “Letter to Memphis,” but the underrated Trompe Le Monde-era Pixies are all over this—single “Miranda” and coda “Voyager Reprise” are respectful echos of the biggest, poppest album the Pixies ever made, and they're adorable for it. When Surfer Blood attach some Rivers Cuomo-style bleeding guitar leads, they deliver pretty much the stickiest tarball of nerdrock joy science can measure. Last track “Drinking Problem” got mauled by Morrissey on the way to mastering, but plenty of bands have suffered that kind of damage and came out OK. As long as these kids swim toward Memphis and not Manchester, they’ll survive.
Wed., Feb. 22, 9 p.m., 2012
