The Appleseed Cast is one of the few bands that has never let me down. Last night’s performance at the Canopy Club proved yet again that they weren’t about to start.

This was the fifth or sixth time I’ve seen these guys, and I’ve noticed more and more that the Cast is truly a musicians’ band. Watching the crowd is almost a rock show in itself. Air drumming abounds. Jealous guitar players (myself included) watch the band with hungry eyes, trying to figure out how the leads are played, what effects are being used, and how all of those swirling, cloudy atmospheres of sound could possibly be produced by four completely normal-looking dudes. For me, trying to understand the music I’m witnessing becomes part of the performance. The band seems to bring all of the complexity and painstakingly precise aspects of classical composition into a raw, energy-driven rock realm. The effect leaves you standing powerless and in a state of nirvana, taking in an hour-long series of crescendos. The music lives and breathes. Read the rest of this entry »