Twenty-one years: That's how long it's taken to perfect the songs covered by The Machine, the world's most renowned Pink Floyd tribute band.

"I honestly think every time we do it, we get a little more insight into it," lead singer Joe Pascarell said.

"We still discover new things in the music, new ways to do it, new areas we didn't notice before. You couldn't play the same songs, the same way, for 21 years -- you'd go out of your mind."

The Machine will bring the sounds of Pink Floyd back to State College at 8 tonight.

The Machine sold out last year's show at the State Theatre, 130 W. College Ave. Kristy Cyone, the venue's marketing director, said she expects the show to be sold out again this year. Not only has the band made a name for itself in State College, but it has received high acclaim in publications like Spin and Rolling Stone magazine.

The Machine played to an estimated 10,000 people a few weeks ago at the New York Artpark in Lewistown, N.Y., marketing and public relations director Maria Costello said. She said she's never been a big fan of Pink Floyd, but The Machine sounded just like the real band.

"If someone were to close their eyes, they would think they are at a Pink Floyd concert -- it was like nothing we've ever had here before," Costello said.

The Machine covers almost 100 Pink Floyd songs from 1969 on, comprising about 75 percent of the band's catalog, Pascarell said. State College can expect some songs from the beginning of Pink Floyd's career, the end and everything in between, he said.

The Machine focuses on making their shows an intimate experience Pink Floyd fans weren't able to get at larger venues during the band's time. Listeners get a sense of isolation in large audiences, and The Machine wants audiences to have a more personal experience at their shows, Pascarell said.

"As soon as you walk out, everyone feels the experience and wants to come back," Cyone said.

A large part of the experience of a Pink Floyd show is the visual aspect, Pascarell said. The Machine puts on a huge light production with a visual screen of the band's music videos that take the audience through the show, he said.

Shane Goldman, a representative from the Rocks Off Concert Cruise series in New York, said the band brings in more equipment for the live show than any other act they've worked with. The show requires much more labor time and staff to set up, he said.

The visual aspect is comprehensive and well thought out -- the main goal is to bring the intent and the feeling of that music into the place, Pascarelli said.

"It's really exciting to see -- you can look at pictures, but it doesn't do it any justice," Cyone said.

Despite the well-known theatrics and highly acclaimed instrumentals The Machine is known for, the band's success with Pink Floyd covers was never planned.

Though all the members of The Machine are fans of Pink Floyd, it was never a conscious decision to be a Pink Floyd tribute band, Pascarell said. The group formed in 1988 when they were all frustrated with side projects, he said. One day, they decided to create a band and just play music they liked.

After receiving positive responses from audiences on the Pink Floyd covers they did at the time, an agent came to them and offered them a deal if they played only Pink Floyd, Pascarell said.

The State Theatre normally doesn't bring in tribute bands, because the theater likes to support original music, executive director Mike Negra said. The difference with The Machine is that people don't have the opportunity to see Pink Floyd anymore -- the theater wouldn't have brought in a Bruce Springsteen tribute band, he said.

"I think especially today, tribute bands have a negative connotation to them," he said.

"People think that tribute bands are formed because the band wasn't good enough to play their own music -- give this band a chance because it's a real band that's good and plays quality music."

The neat thing about performing Pink Floyd covers is the audience it draws, Pascarell said, as he saw at the New York Artpark. A wide range of ages attended, Costello said -- everyone from the young to the college-aged to the elderly came.

"After 21 years, each generation rediscovers it," Pascarell said. "There are always young kids in front of me -- I think that's true of all good, quality art, if I may be so bold."

After over 2,000 shows, Pascarell said the band has tenacity and honesty to credit for its success. When someone is successful at what they really want to do in life, they should just keep doing it, he said.

Except for a nine months hiatus, The Machine has been consistently playing shows all over the world for 21 years, Pascarell said. Though it's been difficult, the fan response has kept them going, he said. It's hard for the band to maintain relationships without having its roots in one place, he said -- only one of the band's members is married.

"I remember saying that in the beginning I will do this as long as it's fun to do, whatever that means," Pascarell said.

"We are trying to expand what we do. We are starting to play with symphony orchestras. We want to keep doing these kinds of things, reinventing the band."

Longtime Pink Floyd fan and State College resident Mike Smith said The Machine is the best Pink Floyd tribute band he's ever seen. He'll keep attending the shows as long as the band keeps coming to town, he said.

"We never practice, because we play all the time. We try to climb deeper and deeper into the songs," Pascarell said. "The beautiful thing about doing this for a living -- it's a bottomless climb."