Like their fellow Ohioans the Black Keys, the Heartless Bastards started out as a fairly spartan throwback rock band. With their sixth album, A Beautiful Life, anchored by the powerful vocals and incisive songwriting of Austin based Erika Wennerstrom, the Heartless Bastards have become a band whose tough, emotionally resonant music incorporates elements of blues, hard rock, garage punk, and country. The Bastards got their break, when Patrick Carney of the Black Keys saw the band at a small club, and passed a copy of their demo to