Conceptually and musically, you’d be hard pressed to find a more enchanting indie-pop combo than Lucius (above). Fronted by co-lead singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig, who sport identical hair and outfits, the Berklee-schooled, Brooklyn-based band recasts girl-group vocals with sparse, fuzzy guitars and tribal percussion. After a couple of unexpected recent appearances at the Boston Calling and Newport Folk festivals, Lucius returns on its own terms – and in the best setting, alongside the harbor outside the Institute of Contemporary Art as part of the museum’s Friday night Wavelength series. Lucius has been working on new material for a followup to 2013’s standout Wildewoman,  so expect a bit of a preview. Aaron Dessner and Lisa Hannigan are no longer on the bill, but Heather Woods Broderick will make a compatible opener on the deck outside the ICA.

Also on Friday, rambunctious roots-rockers Delta Spirit cap a two-night stand at the Sinclair with expected friends like Dr. Dog’s Scott McMicken, Deer Tick’s Ian O’Neil and the Parkington Sisters. And over at the Lizard Lounge the same night, outside-the-box virtuosos Dave Tronzo (slide guitar) and Mat Maneri (electric viola) sit in with jazz/world/groove collective Club d’elf. With all the buzz about Phish’s Trey Anastasio taking the Jerry Garcia role in the recent “Fare Thee Well” stadium shows with Grateful Dead survivors, it’s easy to overlook the role that Bruce Hornsby played on piano and vocals. But now Hornsby’s likely to weave some Dead tunes into his own band the Noisemakers’ Friday set at Boarding House Park as part of the Lowell Summer Music Series. On Saturday, guitarist/singer Warren Haynes – another star journeyman who’s done time with the Dead, Allman Brothers and his own Gov’t Mule – plays that park. And when it comes to surf-rock legends, Dick Dale is the first name that comes to mind; the 78-year-old, Quincy-bred guitar king returns to town despite health issues (gotta pay those medical bills) to fire up the stage at the Middle East Downstairs for an early show on Saturday night.

On the jazz front, there’s the Rockport Music Festival at the state-of-the-art Shalin Liu Performance Center, highlighted by a trio featuring 12-year-old piano prodigy Joey Alexander on Saturday and guitarist Julian Lage’s trio on Sunday, both in afternoon shows, while the festival closes with poll-winning clarinetist Anat Cohen’s quartet on Sunday night. Here’s the whole Rockport Jazz schedule. Also, not quite as far north, the Salem Jazz & Soul Festival takes over the Salem Willows with programming on Saturday and Sunday, closing out with Barrence Whitfield and the Grits & Groceries Orchestra. And here’s the rundown on Salem’s annual event.