White Laces

"“Crawl/Collapse” winds, patiently, through airy kraut and breathy vocals to flex a new variety of “movement” for the quartet. The former raucous, nouveau psychedelia of their eponymous EP is stripped of its tethered dissonance in favor of gliding gaze that’s had kids at Richmond’s staple venue Strange Matter more than swaying in place. Last time we heard from Laces was their split 7” with Arches on “Dissolve into Color.” Fans of that won’t be disappointed, nor will the audience that has yet to catch them live." - Impose Magazine

"White Laces are finding out that the same thing, that perfection can only be achieved through dedicated collaboration. That and superior amplification. In 2010 they put out their first EP on Harding Street Assembly Lab Records, followed the next year by another EP, a seven song cassette and a free MP3 single called “Hands In Mexico”. But this year has been their busiest so far. They have demonstrated that they follow a work ethic that puts most of us to shame, releasing a live EP, a split 10” with The Snowy Owls, a split 7” with Arches (from Philadelphia) for Worthless Junk Records and their first LP, “Moves”, which came out a few weeks ago on Speakertree Records."
- Big Takeover

“The pendulum swings from detachment to embrace give the album these woozy sense of vertigo, a movement in and out of focus, that rather than create unease evokes a sense of otherworldliness, as if you have one foot each firmly placed in the present day and a distant alternate reality. If you have ever seen the Britt Marling film Another Earth, and the feeling of waking from a dream that you are never sure you have fully shaken that it details? That’s what Moves is like for me.” - Sonic Masala

"White Laces' efforts have revealed a sleek, soft-edged, melodic core that breathes within its own carefully conjured, fluid ambience. The sonic exploration has paid off, as Moves is one of the most promising full-length debuts of the year." - Clicky Clicky Music

"Have you ever been to Richmond?... I guess the only way for decent people to keep sane there is to lock themselves in a basement and turn old Mariah Carey samples into Lilysesque dream-pop. Works for me, too." - VICE

“Moves is a determined listen, proving that when it comes to groove-heavy cerebral rock, White Laces should be taken very seriously...The reward is, of course, one of the more redeeming debut records not just of 2012, but in recent memory.” - PopMatters

“White Laces plays a sort of romantically swoony indie-pop, layering up intimate and pillowy sounds so instinctively and assuredly that you can’t always tell what’s a synth and what’s a guitar. Moves, their new debut album, fits in nicely during a summer when the new Wild Nothing and DIIV albums are getting heavy burn, and it hits a lot of those same pleasure centers.” - Stereogum

From time to time as a reviewer you get landed with something so beautiful it leaves you all 'wide mouth frog' in disbelief at its beauty. Enter the self titled EP from America's White Laces.
Comprising of five songs, this EP's sound is reminiscent of The Wrens with clever use of the chiming guitar, just the right amount of distortion and sharp jabbing keyboards wrapped around the mellifluous vocals. Throw it into a pot with early Buffalo Tom and it's a wondrous joy of hooks, bristling with verve, guile and a swarm of effervescent enthusiasm.
Opener 'Motorik Twilight' is cleverly constructed, its transparent production complementing the heady guitars and pounding drums perfectly. 'Spirituals' is much more spiky and agile and has more than a few tinges of lo-fi about it as the vocals are quite low in the mix but the rattling jerky guitar evolves into a heap of bright chords through to a crate of fuzz.
'Sick of Summer' has more than a hint of The Twilight Sad about it with its rolling heavy guitar start but as the song unfolds the slack jawed vox holds the whole damn lot together, it even gets ready to fade out, but the taut chords kick back and unleash a squall of r&b noise. 'Honeywood' is more a release of wild abandon as it's simply races along at breakneck speed and while it's not a groundbreaking new sound, the arrangement is what makes it so irresistible.
The whole thing closes with 'Psykick Healing', which dips into a much darker, moody place. With its molten heavy riff and melancholy finale, it's a fitting and eerie end to what can only be described as a brilliant, brilliant EP. If they can replicate this into an album format while maintaining its muscle in the live arena then White Laces could explode in 2011. Magical.
- Soundblab (UK)

#3 - Dreamy and dissonant guitar driven post-punk, something like early Wipers or Pixies but with swelling choruses, lush duel guitar layers and great, natural vocals. Outstanding production. - The Big Takeover

Richmond, Virginia’s White Laces are back with a storming 7-inch to follow up the towering 12-inch EP they unleashed earlier this year. The new single is a one-two punch that will have you turning your cheek for more. The guitars ring, the drums pummel and melodies soar. This band is truly worthy of walking in the shoes of forebears like Swervedriver, Catherine Wheel and Levitation. White Laces continue to combine their big guitar sound with elements of prog rock while not forgetting the essential pop hooks making them a band to be reckoned with, and this new single sees them honing their powers.
The menacing Bastard’s Dead is on one side. It begins in a tenuous restraint with big gothic drums pounding, finally the hammer comes crashing down with the big chorus and ringing guitars. If you turn it up loud enough it will leave you breathless. The flip side lightens things up a little. Hands in Mexico has a pop vein running through it a mile deep that leaves you satiated for the moment, but with the White Laces firing on all cylinders like this you can’t wait for the next installment! - Finest Kiss

SXSW can be as random as the night you return to your hometown after many years. Sixth Street definitely offers an allure at first, but it can be tough to discern a good bar from one which relies primarily on underage drinkers. Between all the choices on Friday, I threw my hands up in the air and walked into the first bar that sounds appealing. Agave on Sixth might have been the kind of bar you wouldn’t have given a second thought to any other day of the year. But the crevices in Austin seem to offer much more than the most-hyped of showcases often do.

Inside Agave, White Laces, a gutsy four-piece out of Richmond, Virginia played to a near empty room as if it was their last show on Earth. Jangly but full of an unmistakeable lo-fi honesty, if this band’s organic approach to rock and roll doesn’t have record labels knocking down their door, then the majority of the world will be deprived of some bonafide rock and roll warhorses. White Laces set was the most endearing and pleasant surprise of SXSW. - Popmatters

Okay, so maybe this one's not for your iPod — this noisy Richmond-based band's self-titled record is only available on vinyl or streaming online — but if you like Sonic Youth and Dinosaur Jr. (or at least Pavement and Yo La Tengo's song titles), this who-gives-a-shit rock is a welcome throwback. Because you never want to give too much of a shit about the aggressive hipness of what's on your iPod. - Esquire Magazine