Mississippi Cactus filled The Social Friday with its own brand of down home rock flavor. The place was packed, and the crowd was grooving.

They put a cherry on top of the first set with a great version of Led Zepplin's Moby Dick, and as strongly as the band started the evening, they finished stronger.

Mississippi Cactus has been playing for about five years. Brothers Brian and Mike Kasprzak started the band. Brian is the singer, songwriter and guitarist, while Mike plays the drums and percussion. Another Mike (Mike Friedl) plays lead guitar and also writes some of the bands original songs. Nate Ouzourk plays the bass. This show featured a few guest musicians, including Josh Schmidt from Clamnation on keys and Jeff Hamilton on lapsteel and sitar.

Mississippi Cactus has one album under their belt already, and is just putting the finishing touches on their second album. It is slated to drop in early January. Their next gig will be at The Up and Under Pub on Oct. 26. Check out the band's Web site at www.mississippicactus.com.