Subrosa Union, a power-rock trio out of Austin, has something of a loaded name. Although “sub-rosa” directly translated from Latin means “under the rose” - an ancient symbol denoting a secret - their particular brand of bluesy-reggae rock should be no secret to Laredo. The group has played at Jamboozie for two consecutive years, helping to build a stable fan base in the Gateway City, said drummer Paul Valenzuela.

In a play on the words “sabrosa” and “sub-rosa,” the group is actually a “tasty secret,” he said. And the El Paso transplants play much more than reggae, he said

“We’re whatever you want us to be; we play every card,” Valenzuela said. “It sounds like a melting pot of Carlos Santana, Bob Marley and Stevie Ray Vaughan. It’s bluesy-reggae-rock-roots with Latin grooves. It’s flavorful tunes and it’s all about blending heart, soul, reggae, funk.”

Santana, Marley and Vaughan had an indirect influence on the group by virtue of the musicians’ enormous, palpable effect on their individual music genres and the industry itself, he explained.

The group, which finds itself “rehearsing Sixth Street and the Warehouse district” more than 200 times per year, has opened for bands like Authority Zero, 311 and reggae-ska favorites, Slightly Stoopid, Pepper and Fishbone.

Songs such as “247 420 Everyday” and “Save Me” off Subrosa Union’s album “Looking Forward,” released earlier this year, have found plenty of success on legal downloading sites such as iTunes, Valenzuela said along with stating “It appears our songs have been spring break favorites”.

But the success is not measured in dollars, but rather the sharing of their music, he added. “We really don’t look at it as a money situation,” Valenzuela said. “We look at it as it being a platform that any person in any household (can get our music.)” The best part of “sharing the music,” however, is the live shows, he said.

Mike Anaya, Lead guitarist, vocalist and frontman for Subrosa Union, stated that “the experiences he and his bandmates have had over this past year have been incredible. We toured the Middle East for our troops known as Southwest Asia (SWA) in over six countries to include a guided missile carrier in the Perisan Gulf… flying on C17s, C130s, SNAP 15s plus helos from the beach to the ship was an adventure in itself. Taking a brief two week respite before heading to Korea, Japan, Guam and Hawaii to continue on another four week tour for the troops showed us the diversity in sites but nothing less than the high morale and dedication of our troops in serving our nation”. “Incredible and most humbling for all of us” stated, Chris Paulos, bassist and flash MC.

“Our shows brings out a part of us that a CD can’t really tell,” said Valenzuela. “Being extra high energy is important, and so is playing good music that is tasteful and spicy at the same time … also (important is) giving the fans more than they expect … In the next few weeks, Subrosa Union will be finishing up there album in North Hollywood at The Hives, the same studio used by 311″, Valenzuela said.

Anaya stated “working with Mike Cosgrove from Alien Ant Farm as our producer after these tours has given us a new sense of reality and maturity”. “We are looking back and thankful for what we have as we definitely look forward… and in all this we owe our fans a huge amount of thanks for seeing us through and through…”

SUbROS@ UNiON can be visited on www.myspace.com/subrosaunion or their main site at www.subrosaunion.com