July 13, 2007 - DeKalb, IL was the launching point for the first show of a tour on the heels of the release of The Longue Duree which will take Holy Roman Empire through Western Canada and then on to some dates on the West coast of the U.S. I would highly recommend seeing these guys if they roll through your town. Their latest release, The Longue Duree, is a strong collection of well arranged and well-played songs.
I was totally unprepared for the power of this band live, especially Emily Schambra's voice, even after listening to The Longue Duree a number of times. "Undeserving You" kicked major ass - unrelenting guitars, driving rhythm section, and vocals that cut through the wash of sound and burned a path right through your heart.
The band ran through much of the material from The Longue Duree and it sounded even better than it does on the CD. I enjoyed seeing this band in an intimate venue like The House Cafe but in my opinion they could hold their own in any size venue. They looked comfortable on stage but more importantly they looked like they were really enjoying it. So many bands seem like they're just going through the motions so it's refreshing to see a band who look like they're having a ball up on stage.
It was great seeing Tony Tintari on the drums. He has played in a couple of my favorite bands, Shai Hulud and Rise Against. Along with bassist Geoff Reu, who we've seen before with Killing Tree, he kept things percolating quite nicely. The guitars of Neeraj Kane and Jay Jancetic meshed well and always complemented the songs. No flash for flash sake here, although I'm sure both of them are capable of some major flash.
Article comments