SEATTLE — "Thanks for digging heavy metal, guys, 'cause that's what we are."

So said Alien Ant Farm lead singer Dryden Mitchell halfway through the band's set at the Experience Music Project on Monday night. Though impassioned screams greeted his statement, the majority of AAF's propulsive show was a different breed of heavy; more pitch-perfect, radio-ready alt-rock than metal madness.

That's not to say bassist Tye Zamora didn't know how to play the part. With his exaggerated onstage theatrics and nearly nonstop unrollings of his tongue, he resembled no one so much as Gene Simmons, minus the makeup.

Nearly 750 people, the majority of whom were still several years away from voting privileges, surged into the Sky Church — the EMP's cavernous, futuristic concert hall, located just steps away from the museum's myriad exhibits — and gave a fairly enthusiastic response to openers Pressure 4-5, whose straightforward, Silverchairesque rock was distinguished by a steady stream of "motherf---ers."

Amped-up kids were left to cool their heels for nearly a half-hour between sets, though their energy returned undiminished when Alien Ant Farm took the stage to reward their patience with the anthemic "Courage," followed swiftly by a hard-driving "Summer." Both Anthology tracks flowed through the audience like Jolt Cola. Soon bodies were floating above the crowd on a sea of hands, with one particularly enthusiastic young woman showing her gratitude by, well, showing herself off from the waist up.

Of the two tracks the crowd waited most patiently for, the first to arrive was Anthology's first single, "Movies." Onstage, Mitchell lamented that the track had been pushed aside by the phenomenon of the second single (and obvious other audience favorite), "Smooth Criminal." AAF didn't deliver "Movies" until eight songs into the set, but those in attendance didn't seem to mind.

Dozens of upturned faces mouthed the words to nearly every number without apology — only one song in the set, "S.S. Recognize," was absent from the band's 2001 album. That track and "Wish" were as metal as the night got, and like all good rockers, AAF had a ballad ready. For the first and last time of the night, Mitchell donned an acoustic guitar for "Death Days," a thoughtful track augmented by his sure, strong voice and Zamora's backing vocals.

Alien Ant Farm plowed through nearly every track with panache and a surprising assurance — not that these guys have ever had a problem with self-confidence. This is a group that titled its first, independently-released record Greatest Hits.

Before sending the crowd out into the rainy, wind-chilled night, the band unleashed their pièce de résistance, the Michael Jackson cover "Smooth Criminal," complete with Mitchell's signature herky-jerky, no-bendable-parts dance and that infamous riff, though minus the monkey. The hog-wild audience possessed the mic for nearly half the choruses and responded in kind, shouting, "Annie are you OK?" as if she was their new best friend. Before the lights went out, one amazingly precise shout came from the stage: "You knock me off-a my feet now, baby — whoo!"

Watch out, Jacko.

For a feature interview with Alien Ant Farm, check out "Alien Ant Farm: Close Encounters".