Rev Jules posted on August 20, 2007 08:20
Its fair to say that any band which takes their name from a memorable quote spoken in the movie 'Amadeus' by the Emperor Joseph II about the music of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart probably doesn't intend to ply their trade with three chord tricks but Tu Meni Notes went far beyond any concept of what a reasonable level of musical proficency is within a band enviroment in their pursuit of a new golden age of instrumental guitar rock.
Formed in Galway by a group of classically trained musicians who were sick and tired of being in a series of bands with slackers who were more interested in the jazz woodbines than the jazz solos, Tu Meni Notes set out to bring back the kind of virtuoso rock that led to, among other things, Deep Purple Live At The Royal Albert Hall, Joe Satriani and Pat Metheny.
The game plan they came up with is worthy of a standing ovation alone. Briefly, once they had formed they went off and rehearsed for two solid years without ever playing a single gig. Two years of 8 hour sessions with a 10 minute tea break grudgingly thrown in. Thats not counting the endless hours of solo rehearsal time the individual members put in to ensure they didn't get shown up at official band rehearsals; a sort of arms race of virtuosity if you will. Not content with that, they drew up a set list of almost impossible to play numbers, the kind of tunes that make your hands cramp or fingers bleed halfway through, and to top it off, when they finally felt they were ready to perform in public they booked themselves into Galway's scruffy mecca of hard rock, Sally Longs, for 8 gigs on consecutive weeks knowing full well that they would be playing to a crowd that knew their guitar rock inside out and would be very vocal in their dismay if the band didn't cut the mustard.
And you know what? Tu Meni Notes rocked the roof off the house. Then, after eight triumphant concerts, they split, the band having imploded under the insane, self generated pressure to deliver razor sharp, note perfect performances night after night. Here is the band at the height of their short but white hot career, tackling the Rach 9 of fusion, Al Di Meola's "Race With The Devil On Spanish Highway".
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