Heartless Bastards

Heartless Bastards play Mohawk Austin on Sunday, December 13, 2026. They're an Austin-based rock band fronted by Erika Wennerstrom, who handles vocals, songwriting, multi-instrumental duties, and production. She started the group around the turn of the century in Cincinnati, Ohio, taking her cues from Joan Jett, Bob Dylan, and Tom Petty. In 2003, she cut early demos playing most of the instruments herself.

The name came from a bartending gig: a bar's touch-screen game asked, "What is Tom Petty's backing band?" and offered "The Heartless Bastards" as the answer, which she adopted. The band came to life with Stairs and Elevators in 2005, and their discography is highlighted by All This Time (2006), The Mountain (2009), and the seminal Arrow (2012), which peaked at #2 on the Billboard Top Independent Albums Chart. 2021's A Beautiful Life drew widespread praise. They've shared the stage with The Flaming Lips, The Decemberists, Lucinda Williams, and The Avett Brothers, and played festivals including Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Austin City Limits.

It's a local band playing a local room, so this one is right in their own backyard. The show starts at 8 PM at Mohawk Austin, 912 Red River St, Austin, TX 78701.