Flies Are Like Spies From Hell
Nerves Still Beating
Field Records

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This EP from the London/South Coast band acts more like a maxi-single than an EP. The release consists of two new songs and three remixes from their 2009 release. But the instrumentals all compile to react to the late ‘90s post rock craze.

Fans of the genre will expect Nerves Still Beating at face value. Not as explosively high as what Explosions in the Sky are doing, it’s a good thing because Flies Are Like Spies From Hell does not spend 95 percent of their time trying to outdo what they just did. With the title track, there is enough room for the band to explore. And when they do punch you in the face with their crescendos and amplified muscle, you feel it.

It also helps that a remix for a song like “Wallow In Threat (Court of Hidden Faces Remix) spends its time in fuzzy loops and plastic-wrapped feedback. And whether the electronica-infused reworking for a song like “Great Deadener (Gunning For Tamar Remix) does it any justice, I don’t think so. But it does not damage the essence of the song. It’s just odd to make post-rock danceable. It’s like converting a Tortoise song into a disco number. Stretch your mind and it may not be a bad thing, but I would not want to   anticipate the idea.