Any band trying to break into the ranks of the horde of bands saturating today’s pop culture knows that is no easy task.

Subseven, a five-piece hard rock outfit from western Oklahoma, is preparing to cross the line, however. It recently released its first full-length album and is preparing to dive into a hefty schedule of touring.

“We’re going to be on the road for about six months, playing about 150 shows,” says Reed Corbin, bass player and band manager for Subseven.

“Last year was our first big year of national touring,” Corbin says. “It was a tough year, just getting out there and trying to get known. It’s a lot of fun at first, but most of the band members have wives or girlfriends — and after a while, we miss them like crazy.”

Most of the band has been together since high school, when they started jamming and playing locally.

“We recorded a demo in high school — then we got another guitar player and became a four-piece and later became a five-piece by adding another guitar,” Corbin says. “We became a five-piece about two years ago, and that’s when we really underwent a style change.”

Guitarist Caleb Wilkerson says the band has changed dramatically since he’s joined.

“I’ve been a friend of the band for years, and when their guitar player stepped down, I stepped up,” Wilkerson says.

That’s when the band’s sound evolved and it began seeing its potential, Corbin says.

“After we started outgrowing the local scene, we began doing some touring — and we realized this is what God wants us to do right now,” Corbin says.

The band recorded a demo and sent it out to 20 labels. They were pursued by 16 of them and eventually chose Flicker Records.

“I actually quit my career to become the band manager and to tour,” Corbin says.

Corbin says the band’s songwriting has also evolved significantly since adding Wilkerson.

“Our old guitar player would write entire songs and tell everybody what to play,” he says. “Now, somebody will bring a part of a song, and we will play with it and see if we can turn into something good. If we can, we’ll put lyrics to it.”

Although its heavy music may not give it away at first listen, Subseven is a Christian band.

“We try to sing about things that are significant but not depressing — we try to have an uplifting message with our songs,” Wilkerson says.

“It’s difficult when we are on the road, because a lot of times we’re driving on Sundays and we don’t have a church to settle down in. We spend most of our time together, though, so we try to keep ourselves uplifted and accountable.”

Subseven has toured with big-name Christian act and labelmate Pillar, along with several others.

“We’ve played in front of as many as 6,000 people,” Corbin says. “When we’re on stage, it’s like ‘Is this real?’ you know … we’re really doing this. I never planned on this, but it’s happening.”

Despite the heavy touring that has taken them across the country, the upcoming Blinks show will be the band’s first time playing in Iowa.

“We’ve spent plenty of time driving through Iowa … you guys have a lot of corn,” Wilkerson says. “But we’ve never played there before.”

Who: Subseven

Where: Blinks, 232 5th St.

When: 7 p.m. Saturday

Cost: TBA