Breaking Laces returns to Golden Fleece Tavern

Acoustic folk-rock trio Breaking Laces will bring their potent sound and heartfelt tunes to Mojo Main, along with performers Ben Lewis and The War Against Silence, on Thursday. The show begins at 9 p.m.

Following Thursday’s concert, the band will return to Golden Fleece Tavern on Friday at 9 p.m. You must be 21 or older to attend the show at the Golden Fleece.

‘Breaking’ the mold
Unlike the previous albums Breaking Laces recorded, their latest project: “When You Find Out”, released in May, differs from their others because the Brooklyn, N.Y. band was more organized when they entered the studio.

"I think it's the best thing we've ever done," said front man and guitarist Willem Hartong. "We definitely went in prepared this time, whereas before, we would go in and bang out a full album in four days. Having a legit producer [Ed Tuton] and doing pre-production gave us more of an opportunity to hone in on the songs and get them to realize their potential, rather than just banging through it and hoping for the best."

Tuton has worked with a range of artists that includes: Carly Simon, T-Pain, Maxwell and Eagle Eye Cherry. Having been educated by Tuton, Hartong compared Breaking Laces’ former recording process to “fixing things in a mess,” he said.

“Where You Find Out” is an honest album where most of the lyrics are relationship-oriented, shedding light on the highs and lows of Hartong’s experience with his lovely wife, Sarah. In addition, the music for the album is larger than the sum of the band’s parts. 

Plain and simple
Breaking Laces doesn’t strive to reinvent the folk-rock wheel. Their goal is to deliver dynamic tunes, which is something the group succeeds at.

"The idea was to take simple, acoustic pop songs and make them bigger than life," Hartong said. “We've toyed with the addition of members to the band, but we have such a great chemistry as a trio. So the challenge was to make the kind of music we were hearing as a three piece."

He added: “We've played in so many different places for so many different kinds of crowds, and all of that experience has made us stronger. We've found ourselves in situations where everything seems so wrong, and we'll think, 'How are we [going to] do this?' But we just go up there, no matter what, and we find a way to make it work. It's a matter of confidence and practice, but it's also about the ability to go out there and stand together and let all the fears just fall away."

Another staple of the band is having confidence, which is the result of their dedication and diligence towards improving their sound.

“The way you get confidence is hard work,” Hartong said. “I think people sense that when they see a confident group of guys who really love what they’re doing.”

As a result of the band’s confidence, Hartong believes the group has gained the respect of whoever listens to them.

“You might like us, you might not, but we don’t’ suck.”