And Girls Club

iTunes Review

Austin’s Strange Boys released several EPs before this full-length debut appeared on primo garage-rock label In the Red (home of Thee Oh Sees, Jay Reatard, Black Lips, etc.). Landing on the perfect label might seem a stroke of great luck, but surely this young band’s musical skill played a part in the deal. Sounding like a sour mash of early Bob Dylan/Van Morrison (“Woe Is You and Me,” “Should Have Shot Paul”), classic AM radio R&B (“This Girl Taught Me a Dance,” “A Man You’ve Never Known”), and present day cow-punk (“MLKs,” “Then”), Strange Boys bring a sweat on before you even get out of your chair. Vocalist Ryan Sambol howls and warbles like a drunk who lost the brawl but needs to finish his sentence, while the rest of the band churns out walls of vintage guitar jangle and twang set to boisterous, roiling rhythms. Tracks like the gritty, grinding “Heard You Want to Beat Me Up,” the opiate-colored “For Lack of a Better Face,” and the reverb rave-up  “Poem Party” pay tribute to countless ‘60s garage bands whose names are forgotten by many, but whose inspiration runs deep.