"Five ordinary scientists got together   They formed a band destined to rock..."
So begins Theme From "The Isotopes", the introduction song to the short-lived Saturday morning animated adventure chronicling the lives and times of Rochester's own, The Isotopes. This triumphant anthem is also the first track on Real Instrumental Heroes, the third release from the namesake group, and their most versatile and daring set to date. In fact, a couple of tracks have already proven to bring eye-sight to the blind and credit cards to hobos. Plenty of the group's trademark "brutal surf" sound is dished out, along with a host of influences - from the Ween-esque tearjerker Antiseptic Tank to the Iron Maiden-approved closing riff of 50 Centigrade, and the creepy Nocturnal Transmission, which sounds like something out of Grandpa Munster's laboratory. The disc was named one of 2008's best by Freetime magazine.     The band started as an instrumental power trio in 2001 with techie guitarist Handsome B. Wonderful, animated bassist Trent Steele and surf-tastic drummer Hercules Rockefeller. Soon, effects whiz Max Power joined forces, and the mysterious Isotopes Announcer began making obscene and hilarious observations between songs. The Go-Go Dancers have consistently caused heads to turn, jaws to drop, and Penicillin sales to soar. The band finally got good in 2005 with the addition of rhythm guitarist Lance Uppercut, rounding out the current line-up.     Never ones to toot their own horn, the far superior local music act was flattered when their website, theisotopes.com, won the 2007 City Newspaper Critics’ Choice Award for Best Local Band Website. This popular online destination features up-to-the-second gig info, free MP3 downloads, pictures of girls (with corresponding cell phone numbers), and a glimpse at performance video and other short films brilliantly acted by the Topes. Click on any band member below to further increase your knowledge...