The Holy Roman Army are Chris and Laura Coffey, a brother and sister from Co. Carlow who offer up their own distinctive brand of loop-laden electronica. Having spent their teenage years messing around at home with Casio keyboards and tape recorders, they started writing music together again in late 2007 when Chris found himself with a load of self-produced, half-finished beats and soundscapes, and sorely in need of inspiration. The introduction of Laura's ethereal vocals and guitar provided a more melodic influence and offered an intriguing counterpoint to Chris' dense synth-and-sample-heavy tracks.
Their self-released debut album 'How The Light Gets In' is a distillation of their idiosyncratic musical tastes, fusing glitchy laptop beats with melodic sensibilities and referencing acts as diverse as DJ Shadow, The Notwist, Portishead and Mum. From the hushed ambience of opening track 'Berlin' to the dubby 'Lastwood' and electronic pop of 'Neon In Our Dreams', the album covers a broad terrain of musical influences over its eleven tracks. The album was released to considerable critical acclaim in June 2009.
www.myspace.com/theholyromanarmy