Angry Einsteins

X-Sinner is a melodic hard rock/metal band that was started by Greg Bishop in the mid 1980's. They have released three albums between 1989 and 2001. X-Sinner has also been categorized as a Christian Metal band. But what's ironic about that label is that on "Angry Einsteins", I only hear one reference to God in the lyrics, which is on the first track. In any case the music speaks for itself. It's damn good (oops....shame on me for saying that, LOL). In 1996, X-Sinner decided to record a more mainstream project. They named themselves The Angry Einsteins because they viewed themselves as mad scientists running wild in the studio. "Angry Einsteins" was never released upon its completion until now. Retroactive Records convinced the band to use their old name, so not to confuse their fans, and make the title of the project the band's new name. Rex Scott's unmistakable vocals resonate alongside Greg Bishop's thunderous, signature guitar. It's their first release of new material in more than ten years. Fans of excellent commercial hard rock and fans of AC/DC, Def Leppard, Kix and Cinderella will love it. Just on the first listen, I was immediately hooked. The songs are simple yet catchy with plenty of memorable, multi-layered harmonies and choruses. The guitars and bass are driving. Check out, "Down On You". The guitars are very reminiscent of "High N Dry" era Def Leppard in the vein of "Hit and Run". The vocals and acoustics on the track "The Letter (Pardon Me)" sounds very much like 80's Extreme. There's even a killer cover of the Beach Boys "Fun, Fun, Fun". Heavy and rockin' with some use of the cheesy 60's keyboard sound during the mid section. "In Your Eyes" has that AC/DC styled chord playing similar to "If You Want Blood". Even after listening to a song like "Going Around In Circles", you'd swear that Bon Scott never died! "Prophet and the Cowboy" sounds like a mix of Aerosmith, Kix and Cheap Trick, making for an upbeat and grooving track. On "Angry Einsteins", X-Sinner takes the best elements of many of the great 80's commercial metal bands and combines them to make a sound all their own, with a distinction and a caliber almost as good, if not better than most. It's too bad these guys didn't have a bigger following. It's nice to discover music "new" music from the past that has gone virtually unnoticed. Definitely worth picking up! And as of now another addition to my 2003 top 15!