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Heartless Bastards


NewMusicforOldFolks says …

This is not a band you put on to liven up the party. You don't put on the Heartless Bastards to make yourself feel better, unless you're one of those people that feeels better because you discover there's sombody out there that feels even worse. If you're feeling a little moody and contemplative and you're not looking to quash that feeling but rather encourage it, this is the band for that mood. These are the people that liked Cowboy Junkies back in the day. If the opposite of lighthearted is heavyhearted that's what we've got here. The last two Heartless Bastards albums include songs titled "Parted Ways" "The Arrow that Killed the Beast," "Low Low Low," "Black Cloud" and "Pocket Full of Thirst." It's not "99 Red Baloons," but that's not always what we're looking for. I liked Cowboy Junkies.

Artist's Info

See them live: Tour dates

Record company: Partisan Records

Genre: Rock ’Roll, Roots, Alternative Country

Bio (From the artist's Facebook page)

The Heartless Bastards' story starts in Dayton, Ohio, where Erika Wennerstrom found the name on a multiple choice video trivia game at a bar. As a songwriting teenager during a time when GBV and Brainiac were packing local bars and three of the Breeders were still in town, Wennerstrom used to sneak into clubs to check out the scene. "I would just see those people—my music heroes—hanging out at the bar like everyone else," she remembers. "I could see myself in them. It gave me inspiration to do my own thing." (more)

Spotify sampler

Recordings

Most Recent

RESTLESS ONES (2015): Heartless Bastards have spent the past decade in motion, boldly pushing their unique brand of rock ’n roll into new shapes over four acclaimed albums and nearly non-stop roadwork. Now, with Restless Ones, the band sets out once again, blazing a path to a place of shifting moods, seasoned songcraft, and unbridled spontaneity. Heartless Bastards fifth studio recording and follow-up to 2012's breakthrough ARROW, the album finds singer/songwriter Erika Wennerstrom exploring as-yet-unvisited avenues of sound and sensation, her bravery and ambition readily apparent in the emotional timbre and the sheer physicality of her songs. "Wind Up Bird" and "Into The Light" are straightforward yet stunningly sophisticated, shot through with layered guitars, atmospheric harmonies, hints of synth, and a powerhouse rhythm section adept at both subtle swing and heavy horsepower. Wennerstrom's spellbinding vocals are of course front and center, her one-of-a-kind voice as primal, cathartic, and indefinable as ever.

Others

  • Stairs and Elevators (2005)

  • All This Time (2006)

  • The Mountain (2009)

  • Arrow (2012)

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