Though short-lived,
the Romans brought together some of the more interesting musicians on the Los Angeles underground rock scene who created a prescient blend of post-punk artiness, instrumental rock stylings, and the dusty loneliness of country music. The Romans first came together in the early '80s as principle songwriter and bassist Michael Uhlenkott and percussionist
Keith Mitchell, who'd worked together in the band
Monitor, joined forces with guitarist Juan Gomez from Human Hands and Pat Delaney from B People on saxophone. Before the band recorded their first album in 1983,
You Only Live Once,
the Romans had added a second guitarist, Mikey Borens, a former member of
the Consumers. (Another member of
the Consumers, Paul D. Cutler, produced the sessions.) By the time the band recorded their second (and final) album in 1986, The Last Days at the Ranch, Borens had left the band and was replaced on guitar by Robert Lloyd, while Delaney had resigned as a full-time member of the band, though he still played occasional live shows with them. Keyboard player
Chris Cacavas also played on The Last Days at the Ranch and often joined the band on-stage. Following the breakup of
the Romans, Uhlenkott retired from music to concentrate on visual art.
Keith Mitchell joined
Chris Cacavas in his other band,
Green on Red; after
Green on Red folded,
Mitchell performed with
Opal and
Mazzy Star, while
Cacavas launched a solo career. Robert Lloyd became a sideman, working primarily with
John Wesley Harding, but also with Steve Wynn, Paul Kelly, and
Neko Case. And finally, Juan Gomez re-formed Human Hands. ~ Mark Deming