White Laces released their debut album, Moves, a couple of weeks ago on Speakertree Records, and we here at RVA Magazine have been in love with it ever since. Already one of the better active bands here in Richmond, White Laces really took things to a new level with their first full-length collection of songs, incorporating dynamic arrangements and a variety of new instruments into the fold without losing touch with their foundations in heavy guitar-driven rock music. Now, with this Whalehead Studio Session video, they demonstrate their facility with bringing their newer material to life in a live setting.
White Laces released their debut album, Moves, a couple of weeks ago on Speakertree Records, and we here at RVA Magazine have been in love with it ever since. Already one of the better active bands here in Richmond, White Laces really took things to a new level with their first full-length collection of songs, incorporating dynamic arrangements and a variety of new instruments into the fold without losing touch with their foundations in heavy guitar-driven rock music. Now, with this Whalehead Studio Session video, they demonstrate their facility with bringing their newer material to life in a live setting.
Featuring two songs from Moves, “Trading” and “Parallel Chills,” the video provides a close look, shot in HD from multiple camera angles by D.A. Garcia, into the exact means by which White Laces create their songs in real time. The transition from the first half of “Parallel Chills” into the second half is the most striking part of the video; in the opening moments of the song, most of the sounds you hear come from Alex French’s sampler, which he operates as Landis Wine sings the song’s opening verse and drummer Jimmy Held keeps time by silently tapping a stick against his leg. Once the first verse is completed, though, after a brief pause during which a sampled repeating pulse is all we hear, the entire band explodes into simultaneous action, with guitar melodies reverberating through the air over the heavy pound of the rhythm section.
It’s moments like this that make White Laces such an exciting band, both to listen to around the house and to see performing live at local clubs, and the fact that they have so much to offer in both environments surely means that these guys will continue to raise their profile, both within and outside of RVA, in the coming months. So make sure you’re paying attention, not only by picking up a copy of Moves, available now from Speakertree Records, but by catching one of their live performances. Their next RVA show is on Sunday, October 7, with Captured Tracks artist Mac DeMarco, at Strange Matter (details HERE). And to tide you over until then, we bring you their Whalehead Studio Session video. Enjoy.
