Mogul Street Reserve

Rock moguls: Byron Clark, drums and vocals; Ryan Wood, guitar and vocals; Jack Pfiester, bass and vocals; and Chris Prinzel, lead guitar and vocals.

Homebase: Tampa, originally from the Panhandle.

CD: The Truth EP, a live, five-song demo, which can be heard at myspace.com/mogulstreetreserve.

They go way back: Wood and Clark have been family friends since first grade. Pfiester and Prinzel became good friends in high school. "We all went to the same community college back home," Pfiester said, "and actually met in a Jazz Workshop class (three years ago) where the final project was to form a band with classmates and cut a little demo. At the time we were just looking to fulfill a college credit but the chemistry was so strong that it blossomed into moving to Tampa together and living in the same house!"

Group dynamics: "We are all pretty outgoing, Wood said. "I personally try to keep a steady hand on booking."

Pfeister: "Our friends often to compare us to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles."

Progressively accessible: "We don't sacrifice the art of accessible songwriting when incorporating progressive elements," Pfiester said. "We write rock songs first and foremost but the odd time signatures changes, key modulations and instrumental breaks just come naturally."

Wood: "Our main goal is to make intricate music accessible. We don't get too self-indulgent when writing. If a tech-y part is not done tastefully then it's kind of like, 'Hey, look what I can do.' I feel you lose some of your audience by doing that. You know you've done your job when people are dancing to a 7/8 time signature."

Vocal style: "We shoot for catchy melodies and good harmonies," Clark said. "I like to try and write anthem-like hooks with arena rock potential."

Older influences, older siblings? Snippets of King Crimson and the Police can be heard in Mogul Street Reserve's songs, bands in their heyday before the 20-somethings' time.

Clark: "My father and older brother had a lot of influence on me. They laid the ground work. I've been searching for the greatest tunes recorded ever since."

Wood: "Both of my parents were fans of '60s- and '70s-era rock 'n' roll so I was exposed to a lot of those bands growing up. But a lot of music I listen to now was introduced to me by the bandmates and friends."

Other inspirations: My Morning Jacket, the Clash and Yes.

What was their first show like? "Mayhem," replies Clark. "We managed to pack out a small coffee shop and by the time we were done playing some of our fans were kicked out."

Wood: "It was the best feeling I had ever had up 'til then."

Hear them: Friday night at 10 p.m. at the UA Hangout, 2025 E Fowler Ave., Tampa. $5. They play again at 8 p.m. Nov. 11 at Crowbar, 1812 N 17th St. in Ybor City. myspace.com/mogulstreetreserve.