Paul Sinclair isn't a big fan of the term "tribute band." This is somewhat surprising, considering he's the lead singer for a Led Zeppelin tribute band that has been rising in popularity on the East Coast and shows no signs of slowing down.

The truth is Sinclair actually isn't a fan of the tribute scene in general.

"I wish there was another term for it at this point," Sinclair said. "It always implies these guys dress up and act like the performers and bring a Vegas show. That's really not what we do."

This is a point the lead singer -- who could actually pass for Led Zeppelin lead singer Robert Plant sans the blond hair -- wants to make abundantly clear. There are no costumes, no fake accents and absolutely no role-playing of any kind. For the group, Get the Led Out, the music of Led Zeppelin comes first.

"We're not a bunch of guys that sat around and said, 'Hey, we're musicians. Let's pick a band to pay tribute to and make money,' " Sinclair said. "Zeppelin has always been the band for me."

Get the Led Out will perform at 8 p.m. Saturday at the State Theatre, 130 W. College Ave. Mike Negra, executive director for the State Theatre, said Get the Led Out has been on the venue's radar since its reopening in 2006.

"They're probably the top Led Zeppelin tribute band that's out there. They do really good business throughout the East Coast," Negra said. "Tickets are selling very well. We expect the show to sell out."

Sinclair explained that Get the Led Out formed when bassist Paul Piccari contacted Sinclair and his longtime friend/guitarist Paul Hammond in 2003. Sinclair and Hammond took a break from their original band, called Sinclair, and picked up a monthly gig at a small biker bar in Bridgeport, Pa. playing mostly Led Zeppelin songs. Word began to spread about the two's live performance, and Piccari asked if the duo would be interested in starting a Led Zeppelin project, he said.

Since then, the band has been playing up and down the East Coast with tour dates that extend well into June. But what's most important for Sinclair is that the band can do all this good business without being "impersonators," as he refers to some tribute acts. Looking at pictures of Get the Led Out on its Web site, it might appear some members are emulating the clothing style of Zeppelin, but Sinclair chalks it up to mere influence.

"I've always dressed in that '70s fashion," Sinclair said. "Yeah, I wear some low-rise flared jeans, but I'm not copying any outfits he wore."

In addition, don't expect a visual recreation of The Song Remains the Same, the 1976 film of Led Zeppelin's three-night stint at Madison Square Garden in 1973. Sinclair said other Zeppelin tribute acts focus too much on this performance as a guideline.

"Most bands that do a Zeppelin show emulate that performance," he said. "They buy those costumes ... wear the same outfits, the same drum set, same moves, same lines in between songs."

He acknowledged the fact that imitation of that degree might please some fans, but Sinclair eagerly explains Get The Led Out focuses more on replicating the songs as they are heard on the original records.

"We basically take those songs that you'd know from hearing on the radio and just bring them to life in concert, using however many instruments we have to," Sinclair said. "We try to really give you every detail and every nuance just the way it is on the record."

Get the Led Out's dedication to accuracy in every song is readily apparent just by talking to the lead singer. Sinclair described his frustration with tribute bands or cover bands that are just "mailing it in."

"For me it's all about really playing these songs at a level that we can be proud of," he said. "And hopefully people can sit there and enjoy it. The reason they're sitting in their seats, I'm assuming, is how passionate they are about these songs, so I want to give it to them the way they know it."

This includes having as many as three guitarists during one song; no riff can go unheard during a Get the Led Out performance. Perhaps highlighting the band's perfectionist mantra even more so, the band also features singer Diana DeSantis, who duets with Sinclair on "the Battle of Evermore," one of Zeppelin's acoustic numbers.

A typical Get the Led Out performance lasts well more than the two-and-a-half-hour mark. With this much time, Sinclair guarantees the audi ence will hear the staples of Led Zeppelin's career, including the legendary "Stairway to Heaven."

"You will not come to a Get the Led Out show and not hear 'Stairway to Heaven.' There is no way. How could I do that to ya?" Sinclair said. "For every person that says, 'Yeah, I've heard it a hundred times,' there's 20 people there with their lighters waiting. We plan our show out like a rock concert. It's got its peaks and valleys."

Negra said Led Zeppelin fans would enjoy Get the Led Out the same way Grateful Dead fans enjoy Dark Star Orchestra, a Grateful Dead tribute band that has performed at the State Theatre in the past.

"It's the experience, the sound, it's a lot different from a cover band at the Darkhorse [Tavern]," Negra said. "We got nothing but good feedback when it came to Dark Star and the Machine [Pink Floyd tribute band]."

Alex Giovanelli (senior-industrial engineering), a hardcore fan of Led Zeppelin who cites guitarist Jimmy Page as his inspiration for playing the guitar, said he saw one Led Zeppelin tribute band before and is excited to see Get the Led Out's performance.

"Get the Led Out is actually more talented compared to the other cover bands," Giovanelli said. "I think talent is definitely the most important element of cover bands. It's not what they look like, it's really how they play and how they interpret the Led Zeppelin songs."

Judging by Sinclair's shared devotion to accuracy, Get the Led Out should score rather high as far as accurate replication goes. The band members' passion for Led Zeppelin's material coupled with at least 20 years of professional experience gives them the ability to do so.

And like a true Zeppelin fan, Sinclair knows exactly what moment it was that made him truly love Led Zeppelin.

"It was 'Heartbreaker' on Led Zeppelin II," he said. "There's something in that opening riff on 'Heartbreaker' and all of Led Zeppelin's music that is cool and sexy. It's rebellious but positive and aggressive but not angry. It's everything I love in rock music. It epitomizes everything I want to be."