We may be miles apart, but Boston and Austin have two things in common: Both have music scenes that put a premium on good songwriting. By that standard, the Texas quartet Good Looks should do fine when they make their Boston/Cambridge debut this week, at the Cantab Lounge on Tuesday. Based in Americana and folkish pop, the band writes lyrically deep songs that also happen to be catchy.
“The more you write, the more you want to write weirder songs,” frontman and main writer Tyler Jordan said this week. “I have a little more of an Americana background — I love Townes van Zandt, Lucinda Williams, Steve Earle. I wouldn’t say we’re that accomplished, but we try to put good lyrics into rock and roll. And when you add (guitarist Jake Ames) that makes it more rocking and puts some of that ’80s power-pop sound in.”
Their recent single, “If It’s Gone” is a moody breakup song that looks into the personal histories of both partners. “I think songwriting is about being open and allowing the truth to come through in a natural way. I’ve written a lot of breakup songs and you try to cover things that haven’t already been covered. That song is about a four-year relationship that I got out of on Day One of the pandemic. It’s an important song for me because it’s a starting point, it’s unpacking the relationship and also about leaving my 20’s behind.”
Good Looks’ story in recent years has largely been about bad things happening to a good band. Two years ago, lead guitarist Ames was hit by a car, putting him in intensive care and causing temporary brain damage and memory loss. After his recovery the band hit the road last year, only to lose all its equipment in a car wreck.
“Hopefully we’ve gotten all of our bad stuff out of the way,” Jordan said. “Its been weird and those are definitely a big part of our story, but I like to think we’re rolling through it. I would say Jake is in full recovery. He has lost his sense of smell, but otherwise he’s his usual weirdo self. When the accident happened, we got hit from behind and then went into the back of an 18-wheeler; our van caught on fire and we lost everything. Those were two traumatic experiences, and what happened to Jake was more intense, since at least nobody was injured in the wreck. It’s funny, people have near-death experiences and have big revelations afterward, but we just kept on going, I haven’t written anything about it yet. If anything it just confirmed that we’re on the right path.”
The band’s current album, “Lived Here for Awhile” was written before those experiences but recorded afterward. It’s getting good reviews and radio attention, but the band’s goals at this point are still modest.
“We’ve already accomplished more than we’ve ever dreamed of, even if that means going to other cities and playing to 40-50 people. We’re going to the UK for the first time this year and that’s great. But we still get home and go back to our jobs, so our main goal right now is to make our living through music.”