The Strange Boys

For hailing from Austin, Texas — a town that pays tribute to the weird — the Strange Boys play surprisingly straightforward ’60s rock (with a touch of honky-tonk). Singer Ryan Sambol’s snotty delivery and the band’s jangly guitars and clean drumming result in songs belonging in sweltering dive bars and Levi’s commercials. Originally a lean punk duo made up of Sambol and former drummer Matt Hammer, the Strange Boys grew with their sound, picking up new members — including saxophonist Jenna Thornhill DeWitt — along the way. Last year’s Be Brave has the band slugging and tripping through 12 raucous, charming tracks with low-key precision. The album opens in the harmonica-induced haze of “I See,” in stark contrast with its closer, “You Can’t Only Love When You Want To,” which strips Sambol down to one guitar and a lot of attitude. In a time when so much music comes out of soft, carpeted bedrooms, the Strange Boys prefer to get grungy in the garage.