Given the cattiness and fierce competition that seems to run rampant in the music industry, one would think that there’s no such thing as friendship or camaraderie. But Ames’ own Junk Poet and Secret Skin from Omaha are gonna wipe that idea right outta your head.

Instead of cutthroat vying for shows, these two Midwestern music moguls have opted to put their heads together and — gasp! — cooperate for the good of each other. Both bands will appear Friday at Sharkey’s in Omaha (with Secret Skin headlining), and then they’ll cruise to Des Moines for a Saturday night show, this time with Junk Poet in the driver’s seat.

“We’re trying to encourage people to get out early and check them out,” said Joel Grau, Junk Poet’s bassist. “It’s tough enough to get out-of-town gigs, let alone gigs with people at them. We’re gonna see how this works and do a gig-swapping thing.”

Jay Lyon, JP’s guitarist, agreed that it’s much easier to secure shows in unfamiliar territory with the help of a few friends who know the neighborhood. “It’s kinda hard for bands to get decent gigs if you’re not already playing in the area,” he said.

“We’re trying to get people who go to our shows to go see them, and they’re trying to do the same. We’d both be getting something good out of it. I hope we go over well in Omaha with their crowd and that they go over well here.”

Secret Skin and Junk Poet, while not at all clones of each other, share a similar solid-rock foundation. With both playing the same venue on the same night, patrons will hear nothing but complementary tunage.

“[The music’s] different but not so vastly different,” Grau explained. “It’s the same kinda music so that their fans will probably like ours and our fans will like theirs. It’s not like Slayer is playing with Hootie and the Blowfish.”

And although Secret Skin and Junk Poet may have a lot of the same fans, they don’t see themselves as trying to get ahead of the other. “We try not to think of anything as a competition, as far as the band goes,” said Dana Hancock, lead singer and guitarist for Secret Skin. “We try not to compete with other bands; it’s not a game to us, it’s more of a business, though I hate saying that too.”

And as far as the business side of this whole music industry thing goes, both groups have been busy, to say the least. Junk Poet, made up of Grau, Lyon, Jon Fullerton as the voice and Rich Lyon on drums, has been the object of admiration for a couple of big-time record labels (even though the guys aren’t holding their breath) and have another record in the works. Not that they need a major label to guide them.

“We’re planning on doing the next [recording] ourselves, but if someone else take enough interest in it, sure,” Grau said. “[But] we’re not gonna stop and wait for that to happen.

“If we do the next one on our own, we’ll have a firmer knowledge of the industry and be less susceptible to being pushed into something we don’t want to. But we’re in no real hurry. We’ve been through the whole anxiety stage, wanting everything to happen instantly. We’re not past the work-your-ass-off stage, but I realize it takes a while.”

Secret Skin also has big plans. Hancock, bassist Clint Thomas and drummer Paul Weaklend are getting ready to break out the beer because in about three weeks, their sophomore release, Flow, is coming out. They’ve also basked in their fair share of major label attention, although nothing is set in stone.

These Omaha guys are biding their time, just like Junk Poet, and they’re in no huge rush.

“Yeah, sure, we’d love [a major record deal], but so many bands get screwed, and it’s so much more hard work,” Hancock explained. “We have our second CD, and no one’s starving — we’ve got everything we want. We’re not looking for the big break like everyone else is. ‘Cause if it doesn’t happen, they get discouraged and they quit.”

Catch these guys on the brink of stardom. Junk Poet will headline the show with Omaha’s Secret Skin and Go Kart from Kansas City tomorrow night at The Love Shack, located at 625 East Court Ave. in Des Moines. The show starts at 9 p.m. and you gotta have an I.D. to get in.