Way back when, as a young columnist, I wrote that I was disturbed by Roman Holiday's polish and professionalism. This is still the case, but I've made steps to come to terms with it. Now, I'm more inclined to be in awe of the band's sound, instead of suspicious and reactionary. These are four good-looking guys who formed a band in Pacific Studios in 2008, but none of that would mean anything if they didn't have the chops to follow through on their promise.

Roman Holiday's music has always been this huge, arena-ready monster. It's the kind of sound that comes off as if it could never be contained in the local venues in which the band frequently performs. And somehow, they manage to capture this pristine quality in a live setting. Roman Holiday's live recordings sound better than most bands' studio albums.

"It would be easy to think that, because we have this studio, we lay down these songs and it's a very elaborate process and we just make them sound better than they are, but actually it's almost the other way around," says lead singer Shane Lance. "Having the studio allows us to learn to play these songs exactly how we want them, and then capture them that way. In my opinion, and in the feedback we've gotten over the last few years, we replicate it really well live. That's something I value. I think it comes down to being solid, and practicing constantly, so that when we record a song, we record it that way because we've worked on it that way for months."

Of any band I've written about, Roman Holiday stands out as the most inexplicably absent from the radio. "Your Velvet Soul," a single from the band's self-titled first album, wouldn't sound out of place on a modern rock chart or on MTV. It has the qualities all Roman Holiday songs share: cinematic, sweeping melodies and tight harmonies, always building and building toward an immensely satisfying crescendo. As much as people tend to curmudgeonly sniff at modern rock, there is a very definite art to the kind of music that bands like Roman Holiday are successful in creating. All of that slickness is just one piece in the puzzle of creating such solid arena rock.

Thursday, Sept. 15, Roman Holiday will be locally releasing their second album, Move Your Heart/Shake Your Bones. Then, in early October, the band will be jumping across the pond for a UK tour.

"We'll be gone for about three weeks," says Lance. "Initially, when we planned the trip, it was just a tour. Play some clubs, meet up with some fans. Over the last year, the part of Roman Holiday that's grown the most has been our London/UK-based fan base. It's been unbelievable. I don't know what it is about our music, but they just get it immediately. It spreads like wildfire over there."

While Roman Holiday is there, the band will be doing some showcases for record labels. Maybe the mystery of why such a radio-ready band is not on a record label will finally come to a close.

Roman Holiday

Thursday, Sept. 15, 8 p.m., $10
Puyallup Foursquare, 601 Ninth Ave. SE, Puyallup
253.848.9111