Josh Lovseth (Sound on the Sound)Justin Deary, Whalebones’ frontmanWhalebones, a local retro-sounding

Josh Lovseth (Sound on the Sound)Justin Deary, Whalebones’ frontmanWhalebones, a local retro-sounding psych-rock band fronted by a man named Justin Deary, has been completely absent from Seattle’s scene for almost two years. As in, the band’s last show was at Sasquatch ’08. Happily, Whalebones has not, in fact, disintegrated, and will make its triumphant return to the stage on January 31 with new(ish) members Faustine Hudson on drums and Bradford Button on bass, with frontman Deary on guitar and vocals. The show takes place at the Tractor Tavern, and it’s a benefit for victims of the earthquake in Haiti; 100% of the door money (it’s a $10 donation to get in, but consider shelling out more if you’ve got it) will be donated directly to relief efforts in Haiti. If seeing Whalebones isn’t enough to tempt you, the other bands on the bill are great, too: Eugene Wendell and the Demon Rind, the Cute Lepers, who’ve got a new album, and the Tripwires, Mark Pickerel’s powerpop band.Here’s the big news, though: Justin Deary just posted several new songs on Whalebones’ MySpace page that will be included on an upcoming album, which is, according to Faustine Hudson, about 70% recorded and will likely come out sometime this spring. The new songs are called “I Was Hypnotized,” “Love is a Desert” and “For the Sky,” and if these crusty, tripped out jams provide any indication as to what the rest of the new album is going to sound like, you’ll want to be at the show, because Whalebones will be playing new material almost exclusively. Music starts at 8 p.m. and Whalebones goes on second, so you’ll want to get there early.