Shoegaze and new wave often run parallel to each other, admiring each one another from afar. Weekend is the bold high- school kid at the dance who makes the first move, offering a hand to someone across the gym. Behind the guitar noise and dreamy vocal reflections, there’s a romantic core to the music. With Cities Aviv, Haunted Horses. The Barboza, 925 E. Pike St., 709-9467, thebarboza.com. $12 adv. 8 p.m. 21 and over. DH

Stephen Merritt has written hours of gloomy, despairing, heartbreaking lo-fi tracks over the years. Electric Eels Under The Covers: A Night of Magnetic Fields Songs will take his discography down a different route, as members of local electro-pop and glam groups like Night Cadet and Glitterbang reinterpret the gloom to their liking. With Ononos, Nightmare Fortress, Butcher. Chop Suey. $5. 8 p.m. 21 and over. DH

The members of rowdy blues-rock quartet the Strypes are in their mid-to-late teens, yet the band’s debut album, Snapshot, pays respect to storied artists like Chuck Berry, the Yardbirds, and the Rolling Stones. But the Irish foursome pulls inspiration from younger bands, too, and made waves at South by Southwest this year with its energy and attitude. Single “What a Shame,” for example, brings to mind artists like Jet and Arctic Monkeys. With the Knast. The Crocodile, 2200 Second Ave., 441-4618, thecrocodile.com. 8 p.m. $11. 21 and over. ACP