Mae is embarking on its most ambitious project yet, and fans in State College will get a chance to take part when the band plays downtown on Friday.

The Virginia rock band will play at 7:30 p.m. Friday at SoZo. The Composure, Kingsfoil and Like A Movie will open the show.

Tickets are $12 in advance from City Lights Records and nittanybooking.indietickets.com. or $14 at the door.

The show falls one day before Mae releases the second in a series of 12 singles planned for 2009, one for each month of the year.

The project, titled "12 Songs, 12 Months, 1 Goal: Make a Difference," will raise money for a number of different charities. Guitarist Zach Gehring said all profits will be donated to humanitarian efforts.

Gehring said each single will be available for a minimum donation of $1 at whatismae.com. Profits from the first single, "The House That Fire Built," benefit the Habitat for Humanity effort to build a house for the Newport News, Va., family of Rhonda Floyd. Downloads of the song have raised more than $8,000 so far.

"We actually had a family from Pennsylvania donate $1,000 in two $500 increments," Gehring said.

Recent online releases of albums by Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails influenced the crean of this project, Gehring said. Those two albums introduced the idea of consumers naming their own price for music. Though Mae doesn't have as much mainstream draw as those two musical juggernauts, Gehring said the band saw the possibilities of this Internet-based sales model as a chance to make a difference in the world.

"The main focus is raising awareness," Gehring said.

The songs will be released over three four-song EPs this year, titled Morning, Afternoon and Evening after the songs are released as singles. Gehring said the songs themselves won't necessarily form a concept album, though the general theme will be making a difference and raising awareness for humanitarian efforts.

Nittany Booking owner Garrett Bogden said this is the biggest show he's booked so far.

"I've been talking to them about doing a show since I was a freshman, so it's almost been four years now," Bogden said. "This is going to be the year."

Mae, which formed in 2001, released its most recent record, Singularity, with Capitol Records in 2007. Though the band split with Capitol after the release, Bogden said the group maintains a considerable fanbase.

"Right now, we're without a record label by choice," Gehring said. "It's very hard to find, at a major label, someone who's willing to put their reputation on the line."

Gehring said unfortunate timing contributed to the band's split with Capitol. The entire group of people at Capitol who worked on Singularity was fired on the day the record was finished, Gehring said.

As a result, people who were unfamiliar with the record and the band were left to promote the album. However, the group has no hard feelings for the label. Gehring said the experience helped the band realize a major label contract wasn't the right choice.

The band's independence from the rigidity of a major label contract also freed it to pursue its project. Gehring said the group has received several offers to sign with other labels, but has turned them down.

"We couldn't give money away on a major label," Gehring said.

Mae is currently in the studio and playing scattered one-off dates. Gehring said the show will be a sort of celebration for the group's second song release.

"It's an awesome day for us," Gehring said. "We're really excited. It should be a great show."

Bogden said the other three bands on the bill are all local groups that complement Mae's style.