Texas Platters

Bad Lovers

Austin's Bad Lovers throw on fringe jackets and tap a keg of soul, country, and oldies on their second LP. A bongo groove on opener "Askin' for Disaster" and Four Seasons falsettos on "Got It Bad" evidence ambition beyond their garage origins, singer Jimmy Wildcat's youthfully squeaky rasp topping ice cream chords with melodies lighting up catchy hooks. He's almost always singing about love: falling in it, loving your buddies, loving a good song. It takes balls to sing, "Let your love go to the people who done you wrong, though it may be hard." Wild Times' best cut, "Same Old Thing," might have fallen off the Lovin' Spoonful's greatest hits, and the equally potent "Freaks" toasts underdogs with a jackknife chorus. Sealing a consistent 15-song run with the awesomely slapdash sing-along "Rich Beyond Our Wildest Dreams Tonight," it's decided: Of all the throwback music in the Texas underground, Bad Lovers are among the best.