This post is from Out the Other's 2009 Bonnaroo Artist Previews, where I will be posting previews of all the musical acts playing the 2009 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival. Please check out and subscribe to the full site to learn more about all of this year's performers.
Editor's Note: This is a guest preview from Matt Graupman, my cousin and the awesome dude behind Spinadoo Comics, a comic blog and home of the daily journal strip "Stay-At-Home Matt." He can be reached through his site or at spinadoocomics@gmail.com.
Rock 'n' roll used to be a dirty business. If one weren't careful, they might find themselves at a dusty intersection trading their immortal soul to the devil for some bitchin' chops. Nowadays, the grimiest part of rawk is deciding which topical cream would best clear up the, um, gift that a certain "cocktail waitress" gave you in the back of the Petrie dish on wheels in which you film your VH1 reality show. So, yeah, that'd be a downgrade. That's why bands like Heartless Bastards are so important. Carrying on the same tradition as The Black Keys (whoopee!) and The White Stripes (meh), Heartless Bastards are helping to make rock 'n' roll filthy again.
Revolving around a white-hot supernova by the name of Erika Wennerstrom, the band that'll take the stage at Bonnaroo currently consists of sidemen Jesse Ebaugh on bass and Dave Colvin on drums, two guys who did not play on The Mountain, this year's follow-up to 2006's All This Time and 2005's superlative Stairs And Elevators. But none of that matters. Wennerstrom, with her Joplin-esque pack-a-day-chased-with-a-fifth vocals, is the one who anchors the band, belting out weary tales of growing old, breaking down, lovin', cussin', and rockin' (sounds like a Saturday night at the Graupman house). Basically, Heartless Bastards are signed to Fat Possum Records, which should tell you a lot. The songs rip and roll and jangle in all the right ways; their music is loud, raucus and bluesy, which is exactly how rock 'n' roll was and should always be. Go see them. You won't be disappointed.
[Disclaimer: Heartless Bastards are a real authentic rock 'n' roll band. Out The Other and Matt Graupman, specifically, cannot be held liable for injuries relating to the listening of the aforementioned group, including (but not limited to): torn rotator cuffs from intense air-guitar performances, property damage resulting from errant air-drumming, damage (temporary or permanent) to throat resulting from growly sing-a-longs, and/or death. The editors also recommend you take a shower; you've got grimy rock all over yourself.]
Heartless Bastards will play twice on Saturday at Bonnaroo - on the Which stage from 1:30-2:30 p.m. and on the Sonic Stage from 3:15-3:45 p.m. Check out the full Bonnaroo schedule on the official Bonnaroo website.
