Heartless Bastards
Artist: Heartless Bastards
Hails From: Austin, TX
Musical Style: Rock, Indie, Soul
For Fans of: PJ Harvey, Wilco, Cat Power
Why you should check them out:
Essentially the creation of singer/songwriter Erika Wennerstrom, The Heartless Bastards are a unique incarnation of rock and roll, acutely depicted through the passionate wail of Wennerstrom’s raspy and powerful vocals.
Background Check:
The Heartless Bastards are, and always will be a rock band. Even before playing SXSW with the Avett Brothers and the Decemberists in 2009, Heartless Bastards were a rock band. Even before blues man Patrick Carney of the Black Keys passed their demo along to his label, Fat Possum Records, resulting in two critically acclaimed albums of driving rock and soul angst, conceived and powered by Erika Wennerstrom. The Heartless Bastards have always been a rock band, whether it’s in the great state of Ohio where they began or in Austin Texas, where they now reside. Whether it’s as a four piece or three, depending on the front woman’s needs in the studio or on the road. Even when Wennerstrom, as a teenager, was sneaking into clubs and practicing guitar, the Heartless Bastards was there, in her mind, a rock band through and through.
The now reformed trio, is and will continue to be that loud force who can take on the world with a perfect assortment of brash exuberance and cathartic weight. The Heartless Bastard’s sound has earned labels from garage rock to roots rock and everything in between, but really, these genres only stand as embellishments to their pure rock and roll sound, nothing more is needed. Their latest album, The Mountain, sharpens and expands the work of their previous two releases to incorporate the sounds of banjo, mandolin, piano, and various guest artists, but it is Wennerstrom still front and center, full of vigor and life, eschewing simple pop ballads and unnecessary experimentation for what she does best.
Where you can find them in cyberspace:
On Tour:
Handsome Furs
Artist: Handsome Furs
Hails From: Montreal, Canada
Musical Style: Electronic, Indie, Pop
For Fans of: Pulp, Interpol, Wolf Parade
Why you should check them out:
Formed as a catalyst for Dan Boeckner and Alexei Perry to travel the world together, The Handsome Furs traversed through a quickly assembled set list to what has now become a full fledged career, boasting two widely received full length albums within their first two years as both a band and a married couple.
Background Check:
Introduced to the masses with their 2007 debut Plague Park, released on Sub Pop records, the duo offers melancholic songs tempered with rolling beats that do more to get you dancing than to really get you down. With one foot in The Handsome Furs and another in the well known Canadian rock troupe Wolf Parade, singer/songwriter Dan Boeckner has managed to diversify his sound with more straightforward, simplified arrangements and the inclusion of a drum machine as the third member of the Handsome Fur’s lineup. While most husband and wife duo’s keep themselves afloat with jubilant pop sunshine, the Handsome Furs thrive comfortably amid their deep atmospherics and alluring personal chemistry.
Released just this past March, their follow up, Face Control combines brilliantly emblematic lyrics and an Eastern European by way of Interpol sharpness. With Perry predominately displayed behind the synths and a bevy of electronic accompaniment. Boeckner’s fuzzed out and sprawling guitars serve as melodic reinforcement alongside his solidly subdued vocals. Handsome Furs are full of all the energy and playfulness of an adoring couple, they just know how to harness it into an acute, minimalist force of an album.
Where you can find them in cyberspace:
On Tour:
Ezra Furman and the Harpoons
Artist: Ezra Furman and the Harpoons
Hails From: Boston and New York
Musical Style: Alternative Pop/Rock, Indie Pop, Singer-songwriter
For Fans of: Violent Femmes, Okkervil River, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Bright Eyes
Why you should check them out:
These rockers, barely into their 20’s, have emerged fully-formed onto the scene and are not leaving anytime soon. Infectious and precocious, they’ve already released a few tunes that would be radio hits if, well, radio knew what was good for it.
Background Check:
Tufts University, an elite institution located just north of Boston, is not traditionally knows as a cutting-edge musical hotbed. Yet in 2006 it birthed young upstarts Ezra Furman and the Harpoons, formed as an outlet for Furman’s burgeoning catalog of songs. The band combines elements of lit-rock Americana, singer-songwriter folkiness, punk energy and good old fashion pop to produce an insistant and immediate brand of rock.
Singing of sunglasses, wolves and starlet Kirsten Dunst, Ezra Furman and the Harpoons churn out radio-ready ditties designed to invade your earholes and swim around for a while. A tight rhythm section coupled with ebulliently-strummed guitars carry Furman’s warbling, oft-center vocals. The tunes are heartfelt and sincere, and their exuberance jumps out of the speakers.
The prodigious band has already released two full-lengths on Chicago’s excellent Minty Fresh Records, the latter of which, 2008’s Inside the Human Body, cracked more than a few critics’ year end top 10 lists. The band has worked closely with producer Brian Deck, who sports an impressive resume which includes work with the likes of Iron and Wine and Modest Mouse.
Where you can find them in Cyberspace:
Ezra Furman and the Harpoons Website
On Tour:
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