Relient K

The pride of Canton, Ohio, Relient K's Matt Thiessen, Matt Hoopes and Dave Douglas are becoming the punk-pop surprise of the century. In perfect tribute to their style and sense of humor, their name comes from guitarist Hoopes' beat-up old Plymouth Relient K Car -- incidentally the official squad car of the NYPD in 1982. That sense of humor, camp and mischief has become their musical cornerstone. After their self-titled debut in 2002 (produced by dc Talk guitarist Mark Townsend), they took a mere two-and-a-half years to release four hit albums and hit the one million sold mark. Their third LP, Two Lefts Don't Make a Right…But Three Do, debuted at No. 38 on Billboard's Top 200 and went gold, paving the way for the mainstream euphoria of Mmhmm. The band front-pages their Christian foundation in their lives and in the media, but blend the Gospel only gently into their happy tunes. They're uber-peppy without being preppy and hysterically tongue-in-cheek without being sardonic; a feat mastered mostly by frontman and primary songwriter Thiessen (who co-produced MMHMM). In the battle for the best asset, the lyrics are rubber and the melodies are glue; their clever wordplay ricochets like a SuperBall lodging permanently in the head via the stickiest hooks.