It’s not every day that a band as original as Roses and Saké play a show right here in Charleston.

Tonight at Friends & Company, however, local students will have a chance to see them live and on stage.

Roses and Saké take the trends of classic rock and bring them to a new and fresh light.

“We draw our inspiration from Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen,” said Steve McNamee, a student at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and three-year drummer for Roses and Saké.

“We’re much younger and angrier than those guys, so we have a lot of energy.”

Their latest EP, “Love is Dead,” was released last November and was recorded solely by the band.

“It was a ton of fun,” said John Maloney, year-and-a-half guitarist and songwriter for the band. “We did it all in our house. We just set up all of our stuff in the kitchen.”

Though some of the members come from different areas, they still find the time to get together and make some truly amazing music.

“It can get a little difficult,” said Mark Stankowicz, who has been playing trumpet for the band for a year and a half. “It’s tough to have practices, but when we do we try to get everything done.”

Stankowicz’s trumpet playing is an interesting element not seen in many bands today, which provides the band with a unique sound.

Matt Brunner, the most recent addition to the band and a junior history major at Eastern, said the lyrics really help drive the songs.

When it comes to playing local shows, Brunner says that Charleston is one of the most fun towns to play in.

“It’s awesome!” Brunner said. “They yell at me a lot because I’m not as crazy as them. They get into it.”

The band’s performance songs are both covers, like “California Dreamin'” by The Mommas and the Pappas to original compositions.

“I like to make music that can resonate with people,” said Frank Maloney, three year vocalist and songwriter for the band. “We just kind of let it happen.”

Also playing tonight are Little Boy Jr., of Charleston, and Howling Poppies, of Chicago.

Free to stream MP3’s, pictures, band information, videos and more are available on their Myspace page myspace.com/rosesnsake.

Frank Maloney, guitarist for Roses and Saké, performed with the band at The Hideaway on Jan. 5. Roses and Sake` is playing at 8 p.m. tonight at Friends & Co. with Howling Poppies and Little Boy Jr. (Photo courtesy of Hampton Photos)

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