Roses Are Red

Roses Are Red formed in the summer of 2002 from the ashes of numerous other bands around the Western New York area. It originally featured Vincent Minervino on vocals, Brian and Matthew Gordner on guitars, Kevin Mahoney on bass, and Michael Lasaponara on drums. Just 2 months after forming, the band recorded a 4-song demo and hit the road for weekend tours throughout the fall and winter of 2002. Their first full-length, Handshakes And Heartbreaks, was released in June 2003. The band toured the United States in July and August 2003 under their own steam. By the fall of 2003, the band had generated quite a buzz within the indie scene. In August 2003, the band was named «The Next Big Thing» by Absolutepunk.net, and label interest soon followed. In the spring of 2004, Roses Are Red signed with New Jersey-based indie label Trustkill Records.

Playing select dates of the 2004 Warped Tour on the Smartpunk stage, the band built great anticipation for their Trustkill debut, Conversations, which was released in the fall of 2004. The album was produced by Chris Badami (The Early November, The Starting Line). The band toured relentlessly in support of Conversations, supporting The Plain White T’s, Underoath, Silverstein, Matchbook Romance, Chiodos, Hawthorne Heights, and more. RAR returned to the Warped Tour in 2005, playing the Smartpunk Stage yet again alongside Boys Night Out, Armor For Sleep, From First To Last, Emery, and more.

In March 2005, while touring with A Thorn For Every Heart, Kevin Mahoney left the band and was replaced by Brad Gilboe, from Detroit. Mahoney later re-joined the band to record and release their second album, but left shortly after, being replaced by Andy Chamption. Both Matthew and Brian Gordner left the band in October 2005, forcing the band to cancel their November dates. Shaun Murphy joined the band shortly after and was followed by Tom Zenns.

In June 2006, Roses Are Red released their second album, What Became Of Me, one of Alternative Press Magazine’s ‘Most Anticipated Albums Of 2006’. The album was produced by Brian McTernan (Thrice, Circa Survive, Senses Fail).

After the departure of Michael Lasaponara and Shaun Murphy in February 2007, just after the conclusion of the Glitz ‘N Glamour tour (which they headlined and featured Rookie of the Year, Scenes From A Movie, and Four Letter Lie), the band went on hiatus and ultimately disbanded.

Tom Zenns joined the band Time & Distance, but left shortly after. Andy Champion also joined T&D around the same time, playing bass, before leaving to join Zenns in his new project, Love or Lust. Champion eventually left LOL and briefly played in the Buffalo, NY-based band The Boy And His Machine. Michael Lasaponara played drums in the California based-band William Tell for a short while. He then began doing drum tech work for bands such as The Used, The Academy Is…, Armor For Sleep, Cobra Starship and Chiodos before playing drums in Cute Is What We Aim For until their break-up in 2009. He is now with the New York band Nocturnal Me. Kevin Mahoney now plays guitar in Hit The Lights, Tom Zenns is with the Rochester band The Ones That You Like, and Vincent Minervino has a new band called My Island.

Final Line-Up:
Vincent Minervino - vocals/guitar/piano
Michael Lasaponara - drums
Shaun Murphy - guitar/vocals
Tom Zenns - guitar
Andy Champion - bass guitar

Past members:
Kevin Mahoney - bass guitar/vocals
Matthew Gordner - guitar
Brian Gordner - guitar
Brad Gilboe - bass guitar/vocals
Albums
Handshakes and Heartbreaks - 2003
Conversations - 2004
What Became of Me - 2006