The Great White Jenkins at Nanci Raygun

Ever seen two instruments meet on a stage and share that uncomfortable moment of new acquaintances? The Great White Jenkins sort of forces the introductions with a boozy cocktail hour of styles: eerie horns, meet lonely troubadour’s mandolin. Up there on stage, they’ll find some common ground. Capillary Action, which makes the kind of precise music that would get robots crying, opens, along with A New Dawn Fades and Hallelujah! Wednesday, July 5 at 10 p.m. $5. 353-4263.

Motion Picture Demise at Alley Katz

There are moments, brief moments, in “The Way it Goes” from Motion Picture Demise’s forthcoming album “Zip.Boom.Hah” that sound a lot like they belong in the chase scene of one of the finer ’80s films: The guitars are going really fast and bouncy and the five-piece, while tied up tight, has a certain fun quality that the 1990s drained out of us. Maybe it’s just nostalgia, but it’s good. Somedaynever and Too Late the Hero open Friday, July 7 at 5 p.m. $5. 643-2816. S