Rise of Saturn should be full of familiar faces to Pinellas music fans. Four if its members first gained recognition in WeakSauce, and two in Soulfound -- both of which have been pretty popular local acts. And bassist/vocalist Ivan Pena is the CEO of Mohawk Bomb Records.

“Having three-fourths of Weaksauce in rise of Saturn,” explained vocalist-trumpeter Brad Gilmore, “we still hold on to the basic ideology — good times, good rhymes. “Weaksauce was reggae, ska and punk whereas Rise of Saturn is more nerdcore, rock, funk, jazz, salsa, tango, alpha, delta, zero, niner — and polka!”

Sounds delicious. You can see the band at 8 p.m. Friday, with Rude Squad, New Violation and Doll Parts, at Gasoline Alley Cafe, 4042 66th St., Clearwater. All ages admitted. $8. (727) 532-0265.

After the jump, get Julie Garisto's full profile of Rise of Saturn...

Heavenly bodies: Brad Gilmore, vocals, trumpet; Dan “Disqo” Cano, percussion, sax, vocals; Eric Douthirt, guitar; Ivan Pena, bass, vocals; Jack Garrity, guitar, vocals; and Paul “Pablo Honeycut” Liparoto. Though Rise of Saturn may be a brave new world of eclectic mayhem, the North Pinellas musicians first achieved recognition in Weaksauce (Gilmore, Douthirt, Garrity and Liparoto) and Soulfound (Cano and Pena). Their new band rocks in similar funk, jazz and ska galaxies but with newer, trippier twists.

CDs: EP1 on Mohawk Bomb Records, of which Pena is CEO; and a live recording by some fella named “Fraggle” from Crowbar.

A new swirl: “Having three-fourths of Weaksauce in rise of Saturn,” explained Gilmore, “we still hold on to the basic ideology — good times, good rhymes. “Weaksauce was reggae, ska and punk whereas Rise of Saturn is more nerdcore, rock, funk, jazz, salsa, tango, alpha, delta, zero, niner — and polka!”

Liparoto: “We have the same chemistry without the nuisance.”

Pena: “ROS combines the adventurous jams of Mars Volta and the stickiness of Galactic to crease a funk/rap/rock/jazz blend.”

Words: Gilmore, Garrity and Pena write the lyrics. “Whoever is singing them is the one who wrote them,” said Gilmore. “As far as compositions go, someone will come up with a basic idea bring it to the band and we’ll expanded it.”

Band practice: “Once a week — not often enough,” Liparoto says.

So many styles – how do they keep it tight? “We have all been jamming together for a while,” said Pena, “so we know where we like to go, even when embarking on some chaotic jam. This makes it easy to communicate on the fly and keep things tight when they need to be. Since we love the hip-hop beats, staying tight is imperative to making the song sound good.”

What makes them special? “Energy, fun and approachability,” said Gilmore. “I see bands who are great musicians but then they are rooted in one spot like a tree stump or they are all over the place but take themselves too seriously. We put on a show. We’re constantly amping each other up back and forth.”
Liparoto: “Originality, humor, sex, wit and the ability to make you shake.”

That 'bad’?! Their tune Superbad is the set crowd pleaser. Said Gilmore: “It’s kinda like standing in a pool of water while being struck by lightning with a nine-volt battery stuck to your tongue and while drinking 25 red bulls back to back — times a million.”

What makes them rise and shine? “Love — it makes everything better,” responded Gilmore.

Liparoto: “Coffee and drums.”

Hear them: 8 p.m. Friday, with Rude Squad, New Violation and Doll Parts, at Gasoline Alley Cafe, 4042 66th St., Clearwater. All ages admitted. $8. (727) 532-0265. mohawkbomb.com/artists/riseofsaturn.