Agent 51

Formed 1995

Agent 51 was a punk quartet formed in Poway, California, best known for their faux-secret agent image. Originally called Area 51 - after the secret military base in Nevada - the band was formed by guitarists Chris "Broken" Armes and Eric Davis with Greg Schneider on bass and Rob Hunter on drums. Upon noticing the glut of other bands called Area 51, the group decided to change their name but not their appearance, which mimicked that of the mythic Men In Black, government agents who supposedly visited UFO witnesses after their encounters.

Agent 51 released three albums on various record labels, including The Red & The Black, named "Best Punk Album" at the 2003 San Diego Music Awards. The album's moniker was bestowed by the group's second drummer, Mike Levinson, who opined that the two colors seemed to be omnipresent. Unbeknown to the band, the album's title had been used 30 years earlier by the legendary Blue Oyster Cult, a group similarly interested in extraterrestrials.

Agent 51 earned a reputation as a solid live act which frequently included covers of heavy metal classics.  Although their early sound on their first two albums, Red Alert and Just Keep Runnin' is meat-and-potatoes, three chord punk rock, the band seemed to make a conscious decision to distance themselves from their punk roots in their final years, preferring to emphasize their flirtations with heavy metal.

The group's song "American Rock 'n' Roll" earned a brief moment in the national spotlight when it was featured in MTV's show The Real World during filming in San Diego. Despite their successes, Armes left the group and the rest of the band morphed into new projects including 51 Guns, led by Davis and Levinson.

Agent 51 resurfaced, complete with matching suits and dark glasses, for a reunion show at 'Canes in 2005.