I admit, I know next to nothing about Christian rock. But I tried (I really did) to keep an open mind when I listened to the quartet's latest disc.

The first few tracks all begin promisingly enough with chiming guitar fills and a singer who sounds a bit like Billy Joe from Green Day. But by every track's chorus, the music becomes a kind of bombastic, anthemic arena rocker with crunchy power chords and histrionic vocals. Then, dead weird, they do a cover of Real Life's 1983 classic "Send Me an Angel." I'll take a shot in the dark and bet their kind of angel actually has wings.

"This is a great age for a rescue mission," they sing in "Rescue Mission." Note to the band: Whether you're trying to bring people onboard your cause or merely proclaiming it, sometimes a whisper is better than a scream.