White Birds spent the first half of 2011 locked up in an old house just outside of Philadelphia crafting a pensive, somber soundtrack to the breakdown of a relationship. Drenched in a bed of reverb and atmospheric haze, White Birds’ debut LP When Women Played Drums is an escapist’s paradise, an immersive experience full of melodically rich and emotionally vivid songs highlighted by staggering harmonies and memorable hooks. Reviews: "For folks who want to love Arcade Fire, but swear that nothing good has happened since Jesus And Mary Chain called it a day." - My Old Kentucky Blog "White Birds are a band from Philadelphia and they are about to release one of the quietest, poppiest, and best written albums of the year so far. Harmony, harmony, and more harmony. While Brian Wilson is off Disneying it up, these guys are secretly holding the torch." - Sturgeon's Law "If static was a drug and Brian Wilson injected it into his veins before making a new blissed out tune, I’m fairly confident it would sound like White Birds." - I Guess I'm Floating "James Harvey has a sort of magnetic charm - this sort of force that draws you into his songs like a ex-lover you know you shouldn’t speak to any longer but you can’t help yourself. There’s only a matter of time before the seduction pulls with enough force that we’re all playing his game." - yvynyl "What makes a great breakup album? Ask these guys." - Performer Magazine "It’s crazy, I can see this album making it onto my favorite albums of 2012 list (something that is 11 months away!). Listening to it over and over again I’ve realized that, yeah, it really is that good. On their debut album, White Birds show that they are one of the city’s greatest hidden treasures just waiting in the wings, poised for bigger things." - Cactus-Mouth "This is so groggily pretty it makes me want to cry, cry for no reason other than I’m stirred, other than it’s good to cry, other than there’s some pain somewhere inside me to face if only I had the courage to look it in the eyes." - Some Of It Was True "White Birds have released one hell of a debut in the shape of When Women Played Drums. Heart-aching harmonies raise from the lo-fi production – conveying songs of real emotion. Just imagine the Fleet Foxes being kicked into a dank basement with nothing but a few Beach Boy records, a 4 track and plenty of time for reflection." - Bowlegs Music Review "Thoroughly enjoying this debut full length from White Birds, which combines elements of lo fi, folk, shoe gaze and doowop into a glorious sound. Big, bold and one of the best albums I've heard this year." - Bandcamp Hunter "“We Both Scream” is where the Beach Boys comparisons come in, and for good reason. Beach Boys comparisons are thrown around quite cavalierly in music reviews, but this is the track that “Pet Sounds” forgot. It’s driving, and poppy, but laced with an undercurrent of despair and urgency. Also, this is where I hear the strongest similarities between White Birds and Fleet Foxes, but I really find White Birds profoundly more interesting. It’s my feeling that there just seems to be something a little more realized and a bit deeper in what they are doing. " - Listen Before You Buy "There’s something quite magnificent lurking under the sub-aquatic production on this new track from Philadelphia’s White Birds." - Snipe London "“Waters” is an excellent piece of lo-fi indie" - Beats Per Minute "Water coated melody, early Arcade Fire style, breaks through the thick layer of stormy clouds in this dark, alluring track." - NoSnobsAllowed "This is a must have debut album." - Floorshime Zipper Boots "Soaked in reverb, White Birds' dreamy psychedelic beach pot tune "Hondora" is just what I need." - FensePost "The sun-drenched, lo-fi chug-chuggity motor of “Waters” is as rapturous as it is liberating, and makes me want to rip off all my clothes, stick a flower in my hair, and run around a campfire fast enough to open a vortex that would take me back to the psychedelic summer of ’69." - FEELguide "The gritty tape hiss, borderline-seasick reverb and spare instrumentation (acoustic guitar, keyboards, minimal drums) might seem to some like a gimmick, but in fact the paleo-production mimics the way heartbreak feels: like the entire world is full of static and on the verge of collapsing in on itself. Altogether, this EP is like some kind of lo-fi, 21st-century Brill Building/space-Everlys thing, rendered in songs with the audience-baiting length of two and a half to three and a half minutes, and stops-you-in-your-tracks beautiful." - More Drive "White Birds have some serious talent. I fu#!ing love this." - Music from a Green Window "These ambient alt-surf sounds avoid falling into the guitar-band mulch by intelligently, and gently transporting you far from your grubby little life to wide open spaces and fume-free air." - Down & Out