Eye TV drummer Luke Casey has never been to Iowa, or the U.S., for that matter, before the launch of his New Zealand band’s first American tour. But, the 23-year-old England native has no doubts about the Iowa music scene.

“New Zealand has over 60 million sheep. You wouldn’t expect it to have a music scene either, but it does,” Casey said. “Music is made everywhere; it doesn’t matter where you’re from.”

For Casey, making music has been a large part of his life. Drumming lessons for the young lad began at age eight.

“The Nixons (the band’s New Zealand name) is where I first began doing a lot of singing,” he explained. “Our vocals are different than most bands. We don’t have that [in a deep voice] Tarzan sound.”

With an accent as rare as Casey’s, there is no wonder that the band has an original sound. Guitarist Sean Strum handles the lead vocals for the trio, while bassist Mike Scott also adds back-up vocals. “It’s unique that all of us in the band sing,” Casey added. “The combination makes us sound a bit weird, along with being where we are from.”

The band describes themselves as a post-Sonic Youth element, forbidding entrance into the grunge scene of modern rock. Eye TV’s influences include Jane’s Addiction, R.E.M. and the New Zealand outfit Straightjacket Fits. “We’re a rock band, there is no doubt about that,” Casey said. “After being in the U.S., I think we are a little more pop-oriented. Our emphasis is on melody. We don’t fit into the punk revival that seems to be pretty big here.”

Casey’s enrollment into the band stretches only a year back, replacing ex-drummer Mark Pollard. As University of Auckland classmates, Casey’s friendship with Strum and Scott dates back six years. “Yeah, we are still good friends, but it’s a little different when the friendships are stretched all day long, everyday,” Casey explained. “We are not egotistical people, so our arguments tend to be over trivial things.”

Joining forces in 1992, the Incandescent Records band has had great success in New Zealand, including the number-one track of the year on college radio. Strum was recently awarded a composer’s grant by the Queen Elizabeth Arts Council, the first rock recipient since Straightjacket Fits’ Shayne Carter. “Sean has the initial core for most of our songs, and we write our own parts and harmony vocals,” Casey said. “It’s pretty democratic.”

Eye TV’s self-titled U.S. debut, with the help from the radio hit “House of Flowers,” is already gaining media attention. Also available on the disc are two acoustic tracks not found on the New Zealand release: “Down With A D” and “Basement Static.” “Our music is actually more a live thing,” he said. “A concert is a much better representation of the band, more dynamic and uplifting. Our show is a mixture of the new and old. Our music has progressed and is more interesting.”

Eye TV’s American tour has included trips along both the East and West coasts, and according to Casey, it “has been a great time.” “We ruled out all of our misconceptions right away,” he added. “We heard a lot of talk about it, but you can’t experience it until you do it first-hand. Doing some shows for other bands, we realized the saturated difference in our sounds.”

Coming to America added at least one change for the band: their name. The Nixons already being an American band’s name, the trio choose their album title as their new trademark. “Eye TV is a good representation of the band,” Casey said. “We are visual, and we want to create an image to our audience. After shows, we love to hear people’s responses.”

Approaching the end of their tour, Eye TV will be heading back to New Zealand for the holiday and to work on a demo for their new release, to be recorded in March. The trio is planning for spots at some of the big festivals next summer, including the New Zealand alternative extravaganza The Big Day Out. “We will be back in America in June to support the new album,” Casey added. “I am really looking forward to recording.”

You can catch Eye TV on the closing segments of their American tour at the M-Shop tonight at 9 p.m. Tickets for the show are $4, $5 the day of the event.