Eyes like Mirrors: Crusades (Independent)
Eyes like Mirrors have been around the Johannesburg indie scene for a few years now. I remember catching a show of theirs on a rooftop in downtown Johannesburg a while back and not being very impressed. However, from the sound of their new EP, Crusades, Eyes like Mirrors have been through some musical growth spurts in the past few years.
For the uninitiated, they are what would be defined as a post-rock band — think Mogwai, Explosions in the Sky, 65daysofstatic and Godspeed You! Black Emperor.
Opener A Fork Tongue Cuts like a Knife, with its sample of character Howard Beale’s rant from the 1976 movie Network, feels as if it could as easily be venting about the world in 2011 — post-economic meltdown. “I don’t have to tell you things are bad. Everybody knows things are bad. It’s a depression,” says Beale. “Everybody’s out of work or scared of losing their job. The dollar buys a nickel’s worth, banks are going bust, shopkeepers keep a gun under the counter. Punks are running wild in the street and there’s nobody anywhere who seems to know what to do, and there’s no end to it.”
Then the sprawling wall of sound guitar takes over and drives the song home in style. It’s a poignant moment indeed. Although the rest of the EP never quite reaches these heights, it’s clear that Eyes like Mirrors are on the up and up and I’ll be trying to catch a gig soon to see how their live show has developed.
For now their EP is definitely worth a listen if post-rock is your thing.