Rock ‘n’ roll is an American establishment built by the musical standards of the past – local rock group Modena Vox seeks to keep that tradition alive. Modena Vox, Latin for “method of voice,” feeds from the trough laid out primarily by the Beatles but is finding success locating an original voice.

“Even when we try to use our influences it somehow has our own spin,” said guitarist Daniel Harris. “We kind of have more of a dancy feel sometimes, but really at the same time we’re a rock ‘n’ roll band that plays really upbeat music.”

If concert-goers wants power ballads, Modena Vox might not be what they are looking for.

“There aren’t any slow songs in the set that we’re playing out right now; they’re all up-tempo songs. They’re not necessarily distorted but they definitely make people want to move, at least that’s what we’re trying for,” Harris said.

Modena Vox creations are lyrically controlled by singer and guitarist Tony Timperman, but the musical aspects usually take a democratic approach based on trust.

“If someone has a good idea we just let them go with it, and then we just try to back that person up,” Harris said. “We kind of find that if we allow a person to get their original point across it just comes out better than everybody putting their two cents in.”

The collective styles and ideas help Modena use layering techniques to build music.

“We work a really long time on layering instruments in and out, and we have complementary melodies. Two instruments may be playing one certain kind of melody and then we have one guitar that has a counter melody that totally goes with it,” Harris said. “We try to use that a lot with vocal melodies so we can bring them in and out and that kind of changes and sets the tempo for the song.”

The band hopes the songs show an inspiration which is void from the mainstream.

“I don’t think there’s much that inspires me right now as far as what I’m hearing on the radio, seeing on TV – it seems to be kind of this consumerism thing,” Timperman said. It doesn’t seem to me that there’s too much inspired music being made.”

Rather than wait on fate to lift Modena into the realms of success, the group would rather rise from a sturdy fan base.

“We feel like we have product that is a lot different than most things that are going on ,and we have a feeling that when people see our band that they’ll want to see us again,” Timperman said.

Modena doesn’t want to totally forgo the business aspects of being a band but also doesn’t want to get caught worrying about the wrong priorities.

“The music – we work on that, and that’s our product, and that’s what we’re showcasing. We want the music to be excellent, but we also want to be very good businessmen too, so every part of our presentation is excellent,” said drummer Michael Savage. “We have respect for entertainers, but we want to be entertainers and songwriters, and definitely songwriters before entertainers.”

The group’s success together may hinge on the camaraderie the members find with one another.

“We’re like best friends. It’s really important that we’re so close in the band because it allows us to say whatever is on our mind,” Savage said. “There’s no limits to what we can say to each other.”

Good communication with one another is important, but ultimately Modena Vox cannot move forward without the love.

“It’s what I wanted to do for as long as I can remember,” Timperman said. “My favorite part of being in this band is everyone actually cares about it as much as I do.”

Modena Vox will perform at 10 p.m. tonight at Skully’s. Admission is $5.