he began a prolific period of songwriting. The trio released an album each year for the next four years: Love is Dead (1996), Revenge is Sweet, and So Are You (1997), Road to Ruin (1998 - a cover of the Ramones' 1978 album of the same name), and Alcatraz (1999). Portman also released a solo album in 1999 entitled Show Business is My Life. Reader left the band after Alcatraz and joined the Plus Ones. He was replaced by Gabe Meline, who had contributed to the recording of Alcatraz. This lineup recorded the EP The Miracle of Shame in 2000, which also included organ and keyboardist Erik Noyes. Noyes was a semi-official band member who had contributed to Revenge is Sweet, and So Are You and Alcatraz and joined them officially for touring in the summer of 1999, but did not remain with them long. The band toured sporadically until 2002, when Meline left the group. 2003-present: Recent activity The band's lineup once again changed in 2003, with bassist "Bobby J" Jordan replacing Meline. Guitarist Ted Angel also joined, making the band a four-piece again for the first time in ten years. This lineup released the 2004 album Yesterday Rules. Limited touring followed, while Portman continued to perform occasionally as a solo artist and also in The Bomb Bassets. The Mr. T Experience had been relatively inactive since 2005. Portman has instead focused on his writing career. He published his first novel, King Dork, in 2006. A second, Andromeda Klein, followed in 2009. King Dork Approximately, a sequel to Portman's first novel, was released in December 2014. On October 24th, 2016, The Mr. T Experience released their eleventh studio album, "King Dork Approximately: The Album," based on the two "King Dork" books. The album is currently only available by purchasing the latest repressing of Portman's book, "King Dork Approximately," which contains a weblink to the book's official website and a digital download code for the album. Musical style Starting in the era in which hardcore punk and speed metal dominated the underground punk rock musical scene, MTX eschewed these harder-edged trends in favor of a melodic pop-oriented approach reminiscent of the first wave of British punk — with the band likening its sound to such groups as The Damned, Buzzcocks, and Wire and such seminal American bands as the Ramones and The Dickies in a 1988 Flipside interview. Similarly, heavy