The Weary Boys story begins in 2000, when three friends, Brian Salvi, Darren Hoff and Mario Matteoli, left Northern California for Austin, Texas to make a living playing music. In a place like Austin, Texas, of course, aspiring musicians arrive everyday. Something about The Weary Boys, though, was different. Initially, the young trio toiled in trenches of a notoriously competitive music scene. Their first jobs were on street corners, and their first payments were mainly in coins. Almost immediately, however, word of
the young California vagabonds began to crisscross the circuits of Austins music scene. With their huge cowboy hats, tattered jeans, and the infectiously manic combination of telecaster, propulsive rhythm guitar, demented fiddle and close harmony singing, the young trio snapped Austin music lovers awake. In many ways, The Weary Boys seemed to have stepped out of Austins musical past, reminding people of the reasons Austin first gained fame as the home of outlaw country music in the 1970s. In rapid succession, street corner
gave way to happy hour, happy hour to opening slot, opening slot to headlining slot, headlining slot to festival stage. Ace Austin bassist Darren Sluyter joined the band, as did drummer/crooner Cade Callahan (later replaced by hometown friend Cary Ozanian). By the Summer of 2001 and the release of their first album, The Weary Boys had dramatically ascended to the
top of the Austin music scene. Building on their popularity and critical acclaim in Austin, The Weary Boys ventured into neighboring states, establishing enclaves of support in cities throughout the South and Southwest, particularly in towns with vibrant interest in roots music, such as Lafayette, Louisiana, Seattle Washington and Tuscon, Arizona. In the process, they have also opened shows for the likes of Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson, Leon Russel, The Drive-By Truckers, Southern Culture on the Skids and many others. They have played in backyards, front yards, notorious dives, not-so notorious dives, festival stages and the Angola State Penitentiary (twice). In the independent tradition of Austin musicians, The Weary Boys have maintained control over their music, releasing an album every year, managing and booking themselves. In their fifth and latest release, Jumping Jolie, they continue to mine the fertile musical ground between country, bluegrass and rock and roll, creating a sound that defies strict classification. Texas has been good to Weary Boys and they have returned the favor. A band of outlaws in an outlaw town in a state that does things its own way, The Weary Boys continue to remind us what country music is all about.
