For the lead singer and guitarist of a reputable indie rock band, Christopher Crisci of The Appleseed Cast speaks softly and carries a big stick.

Sitting in his living room, which he describes as a ’70s dungeon, Crisci is surrounded by candles, skulls and portraits of Elvis, Hendrix and Jesus.

Concerned about his grammar while being interviewed, Crisci asks that his overuse of the word “like” be edited out.

“I’m the worst interview ever,” Crisci says.

Humility consistently pours from this T-shirt-and-jeans-wearing rocker as he talks about the music his Kansas-based band has been making since 1997.

“From [our second album] until now, the rock songs haven’t really changed — it’s just how we’ve recorded them,” he says.

After two years spent in the studio, The Appleseed Cast released its double-disc set, “Low Level Owl,” in 2001.

“We had a lot of space to fill so we could do a lot of spacy stuff, like recording two minutes of time that was just noise and piano,” Crisci says.

Atmospheric, experimental, complex, organic — these are some of the choice words critics have used to describe these albums. Unfortunately, Crisci says, the media often chooses hype over accuracy.

Specifically, The Appleseed Cast has been repeatedly compared to at least one big-league band that holds little resemblance to The Cast, Crisci says.

“One reviewer said that we were America’s answer to Radiohead,” Crisci says.

“In almost every interview I do now, I get asked, ‘How do you feel, being compared to Radiohead?’ which is pretty absurd. It all comes from that one quote from one reviewer, and everyone’s copied from that.”

Even reputable music resources like All Music Guide, www.allmusic.com, are guilty of making inaccurate claims about The Appleseed Cast’s “Low Level Owl,” Crisci says.

“These two records took a cue from Radiohead’s ‘Kid A’ and sent the band careening into space rock and electronica with only traces of emo poking through,” its Web site says.

In response to this, Crisci says he can’t help but laugh. He says the differences between the two albums couldn’t be bigger, and “Low Level Owl” was actually recorded before “Kid A” was even released.

“I think actually Radiohead took cues from us,” Crisci jokes. “They decided what they wanted to do when they heard our record somehow.”

Crisci meekly contrasts Radiohead’s talent and style to his own.

“First of all, [Thom Yorke] sings a thousand times better than I do,” he says.

“Our music is nothing alike. They went electronic and we’ve always stayed guitar rock.”

Crisci says it is humorous how easily a single quote or rumor can snowball. Understanding how the comparison came to be blown so far out of proportion hasn’t helped Crisci pay the bills, however.

“It’s flattering but it’s just ludicrous,” Crisci says.

“‘America’s answer to Radiohead?’ They’re making millions of dollars. I can barely pay my rent. There’s not an ‘answer’ here.”

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Who: The Appleseed Cast, Senator Kelly

Where: M-Shop

When: 7:30 p.m., Sunday

Cost: $5 students, $7 public