Fresh-faced, in jeans and almost-matching long-sleeved plaid shirts, the guys onstage jump around in frenzied excitement, accompanied by powerful drum beats and a driving bass guitar.

No, it’s not Red Hot Chili Peppers performing for the enthusiastic crowd, but Silent Horizon, Sacramento’s own Christian-based rock group.

“A lot of people don’t know we’re a Christian band. We’re not like, as my guitarist says, a ‘flowing river’ band, we don’t just talk about happy things like flowing rivers and flowery meadows…”

This from lead singer and co-founder of the group, Karl Kobrock. All Christians, the four band members, including lead guitarist Conor Mason, bass guitarist Matt Linder, and drummer Aaron Chamberlain, incorporate Christian ideals with a blend of alternative and 80s rock.

“We’re not perfect, even though we try to live a Christian life. We struggle with things…and that’s what we write about…we’re like MXPX and Lifehouse, who are on secular labels. You really have to listen to the lyrics to realize they’re a Christian band.”

Silent Horizon was formed by Kobrock and Mason, who went to high school together, and in college decided to realize their dream of forming a band, eventually recruiting Linder and Chamberlain.

“I was fortunate enough to meet Matt and Aaron as well, who are extremely talented,” Kobrock said. “We’re all making our collective dream come true.”

The two-year-old band is a veteran of local gigs in Sacramento, like Old Ironsides, Bojangles and the Powerhouse Pub, but has also ventured to Washington, playing in Tom Fest which features about 120 bands.

“It was good for us friendship-wise because we really bonded on that trip, which made our music stronger,” Kobrock said.

Mason and Kobrock collaborate on the songwriting, taking from their real experiences with women and religion, mostly. “Don’t Say Goodbye” is a song about a girl Kobrock dated until she left to go to school in Riverside.

“I wrote it when she left,” said Kobrock. “You know when you click with someone, and you feel like it’s someone you could be with…but she was going away.”

“In Your Eyes,” a new song not on their self-titled album, is a song Conor wrote for his current girlfriend.

Ryan Ann Polli, the group’s booking and promotional manager, who believes her role is to “kiss clubs’ ass(es) and try to get ’em in places,” energetically explains the essence of the band:

“The whole fun of the band is seeing them live…they’re always jumping around and having fun.”

Polli, who knew Mason and Kobrock in high school, met up with them again in college (Kobrock and Linder attend Sacramento State) and got into the band right away.

“The music struck me. It’s good music, it’s fun. You can joke and say their music’s about chicks and God.”

Silent Horizon, who writes all of their own material, can’t resist throwing a few covers into the mix during live performances. These include Buddy Holly’s “Johnny B. Goode” and “Daydream Believer” by the Monkees. The band’s favorite, however, is “Chick Magnet” by fellow Christian band MXPX, which the band covers in tribute to bassist Linder, the band’s resident Romeo.

Silent Horizon will be at Powerhouse Pub on Thursday, April 5 at 9 p.m.Fans can also catch them on Friday, May 4 at the Gloria Dei Lutheran Church.For more information on Silent Horizon, log on to their Web site at www.silenthorizon.com.