The Appleseed Cast is a quartet from Lawrence, Kan., an insular college town that has been a hothouse for indie pop music ever since The Embarrassment made a nonchalant splash a quarter-century ago.

When you hail from a state renowned for its corn fields, acceptance by the big-city hipsters can be a love/hate desire, which probably feeds into my admiration for this particular band. They’ve soldiered on 11 years with just a few personnel changes on the edges, making eight CDs for five different independent record labels. Under such circumstances, stylistic continuity can be vital in nurturing a fan base, yet Appleseed Cast keeps playing what it pleases, and doing it well every time.

They started out emo in 1998, battered hearts and bruised bass drums flush on their sleeves. Three years later, the group dropped a pair of discs — "Low Level Owl Vol. 1" in August, "Low Level Owl Vol. 2" in October — that ran on into a single, experimental fever dream, and had everybody finger-pointing at Radiohead as the obvious influence. True enough, but way easier said than done: Emo Kansans concocting a spacey-spectral orchestra.

Let’s dart ahead to the just-released album #8, "Sagarmatha," three tracks of which can be heard on the group’s MySpace page here. Not surprisingly, it’s a little bit different from all the rest, a trifle more experimental with its behind-the-mix flits and deliberately dynamic textures. "The Summer Before" hangs the gauze on the clothesline, like the Jesus and Mary Cure. "As the Little Things Go" layers a simple, beautiful, drum beat over a simple, beautiful guitar line. And "Raise the Sails" sets a big ship in stormy seas.

The Appleseed Cast performs an all-ages show at the Triple Rock tonight, with a procession of openers — Daybreak, Giants and One For the Team — taking the stage beginning at 5 p.m. Show up after work and freak the kids out.

The Appleseed Cast, 5 p.m. tonight (Feb. 24), at the Triple Rock, $13.