Heartless Bastards are an American rock band formed in

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

in 2003. The band has released six albums.

History

Heartless Bastards originally started as a recording project of Erika Wennerstrom. She played most of the instruments and featured David Colvin on drums, along with contributions from Reuben Glaser on lead guitar and Jesse Ebaugh on bass. A five-song demo was recorded in December 2002 at Ultrasuede Studios by Shannon McGee. Wennerstrom put together a live band and played the first live show at The Comet, a bar in the

community of

Northside Northside or North Side may refer to: Music * Northside (band), a musical group from Manchester, England * NorthSide, an American record label * NorthSide Festival (Denmark), a music festival in Aarhus, Denmark * "Norf Norf", a 2015 song by Vinc ...

, in August 2003. The live lineup came to be a three-piece with Kevin Vaughn on drums and Mike Lamping on bass. The band was signed to

Fat Possum Records Fat Possum Records is an American independent record label based in Water Valley and Oxford, Mississippi. At first Fat Possum focused almost entirely on recording previously unknown Mississippi blues artists (typically from Oxford or Holly Sprin ...

in 2004 after Patrick Carney from

The Black Keys The Black Keys are an American rock duo formed in Akron, Ohio, in 2001. The group consists of Dan Auerbach (guitar, vocals) and Patrick Carney (drums). The duo began as an independent act, recording music in basements and self-producing their ...

passed along a demo he received from Wennerstrom. According to Wennerstrom, the name of the band came from a question on a Mega Touch trivia quiz game at a bar. A question asked the name of

Tom Petty Thomas Earl Petty (October 20, 1950October 2, 2017) was an American musician who was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, formed in 1976. He previously led the band Mudcrutch, was a member of the lat ...

's backing band, and one of the options was "Tom Petty and the Heartless Bastards". She thought it was funny, and used it when she later formed a band. Their debut album ''Stairs and Elevators'' was released in 2004. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' said, "the Heartless Bastards are a small-town band who are ready to show the big city no mercy". ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the crea ...

'' wrote: "deadeye accurate in pitch and message... what we've got is a hard, gnarled voice singing simple-seeming melodies that feel archetypal rather than ordinary, which is no easier to explain than it is to do". Stylus gave the group high praise, stating, "(Erika Wennerstrom) and her two band mates have created an album with more rocking songs and fat hooks than most bands can dream of. It’s not just that they rock, it’s that you believe what you hear, that they love the sound they make, that Wennerstrom lays her soul bare in her lyrics without sounding like

Sarah McLachlan Sarah Ann McLachlan Order of Canada, OC Order of British Columbia, OBC (born January 28, 1968) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. As of 2015, she had sold over 40 million albums worldwide. McLachlan's best-selling album to date is ''Surfacing ( ...

, that the women of rock who labored to make it OK for a girl to dream of playing guitar deserve far better than

Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, ''Let Go (Avril Lavigne album), Let Go'' (2002), is the ...

Kelly Osbourne Kelly Michelle Lee Osbourne (born 27 October 1984) is an English television personality, singer, actress, model, and fashion designer. The daughter of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, she appeared on the reality show '' The Osbournes'' (2002–2005) w ...

as their descendants." The second full-length album from the band, '' All This Time'', was released on August 8, 2006. The band road tested many of the tracks on the record prior to releasing it. The album relies less on guitar riffs and belted vocals and more on musicianship, without leaving behind the group's unique sound. On the modern rock station

WOXY WOXY may refer to: * WOXY.com, a defunct Internet radio station * WOXY (FM) WOXY (97.7 FM) is a radio station licensed to Mason, Ohio as part of the Cincinnati market. Nicknamed La Mega 97.7, the station broadcasts a Spanish variety music format ...

, the band was ranked No. 12 on the 97 Best of 2005, putting the band among the likes of

Spoon A spoon is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl (also known as a head), oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery (sometimes called flatware in the United States), especially as part of a place setting, it is used primarily f ...

and ahead of

The White Stripes The White Stripes were an American rock duo from Detroit formed in 1997. The group consisted of Jack White (songwriter, vocals, guitar, piano, and mandolin) and Meg White (drums and vocals). After releasing several singles and three albums wit ...

. In August 2008, a new line-up for the band was announced. Erika Wennerstrom remains the only constant member, rejoined by bassist Jesse Ebaugh and original Heartless Bastards drummer Dave Colvin. Their third album ''

The Mountain The Mountain (french: La Montagne) was a political group during the French Revolution. Its members, called the Montagnards (), sat on the highest benches in the National Convention. They were the most radical group and opposed the Girondins. Th ...

'' was released February 3, 2009 on

and was produced by

producer Mike McCarthy. For this album the band broadened their sound to include elements of country music, employing violin, banjo, mandolin, and steel guitar. Heartless Bastards performed a taping for the PBS series ''

Austin City Limits ''Austin City Limits'' is an American live music television program recorded and produced by Austin PBS. The show helped Austin become widely known in the United States as the "Live Music Capital of the World", and is the only television show to ...

'' on June 3, 2009 as part of the show's 35th anniversary season. In October and November 2009 the band opened for

Wolfmother Wolfmother is an Australian hard rock band from Sydney. Formed in 2004, the group is centred around vocalist and guitarist Andrew Stockdale, who is the only constant member of the line-up. The band has been through many personnel changes since ...

during the band's American tour. On November 17, 2011, Heartless Bastards announced they had signed with Brooklyn-based

Partisan Records Partisan Records is an independent record label with offices in London and Los Angeles, as well as in New York City, where the company was co-founded in 2007 by Tim Putnam and Ian Wheeler. The label, initially run out of Putnam’s South Brooklyn ...

to release their fourth album ''Arrow'' on February 14, 2012. On December 15, 2011, the band announced on Twitter that the pre-order for ''Arrow'' was launched, and that fans could get a limited edition lithograph by preordering. ''Arrow'' was produced by

drummer Jim Eno at his Public Hi-Fi home studio in

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

. It features the current line-up of Erika Wennerstrom (vocals/guitar), Jesse Ebaugh (bass), Dave Colvin (drums) and Mark Nathan (guitar). Wennerstrom said, "I feel like this is the strongest record I've ever done. I feel like playing with these guys, us all being so connected, really helped make it so fully realized. I'm really, really happy with it". On December 1, 2011, the first single from ''Arrow'' called "Parted Ways" was released exclusively on RollingStone.com and to the band's fans. The band appeared at the Fonda Theater in Los Angeles on September 28, 2014 as part of "

George Fest ''George Fest'' – subtitled ''A Night to Celebrate the Music of George Harrison'' – is a live album and concert DVD package documenting the George Fest tribute concert to former Beatle George Harrison, held at the Fonda Theatre in Los Ange ...

: A Night to Celebrate The Music of

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

." Their performance of "If Not For You," the

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

song Harrison included on his 1970 triple album

All Things Must Pass ''All Things Must Pass'' is the third studio album by English rock musician George Harrison. Released as a triple album in November 1970, it was Harrison's first solo work after the break-up of the Beatles in April that year. It includes the h ...

, is included on the 2016 soundtrack album and in the concert film, also included as the third disc of the Vagrant/Hot Records package. The band's fifth album, ''Restless Ones'', was released on June 16, 2015. Wennerstrom released her debut solo album, ''Sweet Unknown'', in 2018. The band's sixth album, ''A Beautiful Life'', was released on September 10, 2021. The album was the first on their own label, Sweet Unknown Records. It was preceded by the singles "How Low" and "Revolution". Wennerstrom considered releasing the album as a solo effort, but then decided that the album was a continuation of the journey begun on the band’s debut ''Stairs and Elevators''.

Discography

* 2005 - '' Stairs and Elevators'' -

* 2006 - '' All This Time'' - Fat Possum Records * 2009 - ''

'' - Fat Possum Records; No. 150 U.S. * 2012 - ''

Arrow An arrow is a fin-stabilized projectile launched by a bow. A typical arrow usually consists of a long, stiff, straight shaft with a weighty (and usually sharp and pointed) arrowhead attached to the front end, multiple fin-like stabilizers c ...

'' -

; No. 78 U.S. * 2015 - '' Restless Ones'' - Partisan Records * 2021 - ''A Beautiful Life'' - Sweet Unknown Records

Television credits

* "Sway" was featured in Season 4 for the television series '' Friday Night Lights'', and included on the '' Friday Night Lights Vol. 2'' soundtrack album. "All This Time" was featured in "Git Er 'Dun" (Season 1, Episode 5) of ''Friday Night Lights'', but was not featured on the official soundtrack. * "Got to Have Rock and Roll" was featured in "Discovery" (season 2 episode 4) of '' Suits'', while "Marathon" was featured in "Blood in the Water" (season 2 episode 12) of the show. * "Only for You" was featured in "The Path of the Righteous" (season 1 episode 11) of '' Daredevil'' as well as Chuck season 5 episode 4 "Chuck vs. The Business Trip". * "Hi Line" and "Gates of Dawn" were performed live on Last Call with Carson Daly in November, 2015.

Reviews

Rolling Stone Review of ''Stairs and Elevators''

Stylus Review of ''Stairs and Elevators''

PopMatters Review of ''Stairs and Elevators''

Blender Review of ''Stairs and Elevators''

Prefixmag Review of ''Stairs and Elevators''

Sponic Zine Review of ''Stairs and Elevators''

Pitchfork Review of ''All This Time''

Blender Review of ''All This Time''

The Austin Chronicle Review of ''All This Time''

Time Magazine Live Review 7.30.13

Filter Magazine Live Review 2.27.09

References

External links

Official website

Heartless Bastards page on the Partisan Records website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heartless Bastards, The 2003 establishments in Ohio American blues rock musical groups Garage rock groups from Ohio Fat Possum Records artists Musical groups established in 2003 Musical groups from Cincinnati Musical groups from Ohio Partisan Records artists Dine Alone Records artists