Ever since the Heartless Bastards** broke onto the scene in 2005 with their punch-packing debut album, Stairs and Elevators, they have been on the radar of every music industry insider, good music appreciator, and insufferable indie music know-it-all  (the latter of which are most commonly found in the dorm rooms of of liberal arts colleges or writing for music blogs). And the star in this band’s musical constellation that caught everyone’s eye was the incredibly soulful, throaty voice of singer/guitarist/lyricist Erika Wennerstrom. Her unfussy but powerful vocals are like the supernova center around which the rest of the band has always worked to catch and support the remnants of her vocal explosion.

Since their debut, Heartless Bastards has taken a number of good, albeit small, steps forward in advancing their sound. 2006’s All This Time was lovely but a bit one-note; and 2009’s The Mountain was strong but felt slightly overworked. Next came this year’s Arrow. Somewhere between the Heartless Bastards’ wallop of a sound found on Stairs and Elevators, and the latest bluesy strut from The Black Keys lies the sound of this, their fourth, full-length album. It was produced by Spoon drummer Jim Eno and recorded in his Public Hi-Fi Studio located in the “Live music capital of the world” (aka, Austin, TX). The most markedly different aspect of this album from previous ones by Bastards is the level of ease with which they play each song. This is quite an achievement for a band who is putting out their first album with a new label (now Partisan, moved from Fat Possum) and working meticulously to meld into a cohesive ensemble since their major restructuring in 2008. It was then that Wennerstrom rebuilt the group completely and what was once a trio became a quartet of all new members, save the original songstress at its center. I just hope that another restructuring isn’t soon to come, as it feels like this is finally a band that can work in perfect harmony with Wennerstrom’s voice.

As for the album, Arrow begins with the beautiful and sweeping “Marathon” and continues along the road of nostalgic bluesy rock with “Parted Ways“. There are other classic rock throwbacks like “Late in the Night“, and more introspective numbers like “Down in the Canyon” and the quieter “Only for You“.  I only wish the band had found more nuance in the album’s emotional landscape – most songs are either weary or a bluesy/mellow stomp.  But this has been a common criticism of Bastards: there isn’t much range. That said, I suppose you can’t fault them for working to strengthen the foundation of what they do best before heading out to experiment. What we get on Arrow is certainly more refined than where they started sevens years ago with the garage rock sound of Stairs and Elevators.

Listening to the album in its entirety, I couldn’t escape the thought that at times – none more so than on ballads like “Marathon” or “The Arrow Killed the Beast” – Ms. Wennerstrom’s voice sounds an awful lot like Brandi Carlile, another female singer with an equally powerful set of pipes. Though the two traffic in different genres and possess different points of view, both of these ladies have voices of undeniable rawness. And each voice is capable of purging the deepest of emotions. The difference is that Carlile’s work is basically a solo showcase for her tremendous voice (it’s warmer than Wennerstrom’s, too); while Bastards is most definitely a group effort (though one orbiting around Wennerstrom’s more androgynous voice). When stacked up next to each other, these voices are like apples and oranges, but they are both shining examples of powerful female vocalists that stand on the strength of their chords; they are not hiding it away in order to produce a more demure cotton candy sound. Thank God for that. While Bastards know that their strongest asset is to be found in the power of Wennerstrom’s vocals, as an ensemble it provides a strong skeleton upon which Wennerstrom to lay that voice upon.

My only other real criticism of the album has to do with the song “Got to Have Rock and Roll“. For a number meant to seemingly endorse the redemptive spirit that is ever-present in the Ministry of Rock and Roll, it’s pretty lackadaisical. With its slow drag and mellow mood, this number feels more like a song you would listen to while enjoying a few beers on a sun-kissed beach in summer. Which, I think we can all agree, ain’t a bad thing. Again, this comes down to a naming issue and some tweaks that I wish Wennerstrom had made as a lyricist. Sure “Got to Have Rock and Roll” is a seductive title, but perhaps the song should have been called something a bit more in line with the song’s tone and sensibilities: Got to Have A Drink? Chill music? A vacation? I don’t know.

On the whole, Arrow feels like a laid-back garage jam session between friends. Which is a wonderful advancement for a band that, over the course of their last two albums, seemed to be in search of a tight ensemble strong enough to support Wennerstrom’s voice without eclipsing it. In Arrow, they seemed to have found a beautiful balance and this album is a gorgeous step in the Heartless Bastards’ musical maturation.

You can check out a live stream of Arrow in it’s entirety over on NPR Music. The album is also available for purchase at your local independent record store, your larger chain store, or on iTunes.

 

** I hate to knock what may be considered a pretty bad-ass name for a band, but I’m about to. Ok, it’s not much of a knock, more of a slap on the wrist really. Why am I doing it? Because the name “Heartless Bastards” is misleading. It creates a great divide between the expectation and reality of the band’s sound. The first thing that sprung to my mind upon hearing the name “Heartless Bastards” was tween white boy rap. This is, thankfully, not that. Not even close. I’m not saying that clever wordplay or intentional vagueness, or hell, even hipster irony, can’t be present in band names (or album titles or funny t-shirts). Those types of names can work. This just isn’t one of them. Their name does a tremendous disservice to the actual thoughtful indie rock music you will find here. Are we all agreed? Or am I just being an old stickler for branding? Ok. Moving on.