Pop Will Eat Itself are proving to be an exception to the rule that British bands cannot break through in the United States.

Admittedly, the Poppies, as they are affectionately known, are not filling JFK stadium or topping the Billboard charts - not that they want to - but a recent American tour supporting Nine Inch Nails showed signs of progress for the Stourbridge-based band.

As lead guitarist and vocalist Clint Mansell told me: "It was really encouraging. We hadn't done a support tour before and with Nine Inch Nails being so big over there, we wondered if perhaps people might ignore us. But the venues which were 8000 to 10000 capacity, were normally at least three quarters full when we were on, which is pretty good.

It is still early days over there. We haven't really got past the club level yet but I think our touring is starting to pay off. Our record sales trebled during the last tour."

Clint puts the relative failure of British bands to win over United States audiences as partly down to an unwillingness to tour.

"I think a lot of it is down to how much the record companies get behind you," he said.

"And part of the problem is that some of the English bands aren't prepared to tour. Over here the groups who make it are those who tour, especially if you aren't particularly commercial like us. You need to do gigs where people can see you."

PWEI have returned to Britain in time for the release of a new album, Two Fingers My Friends - actually a remix of last year's Dos Dedos Mis Amigos.

The double album features remixes by Jah Wobble, The Orb, Transglobal Underground, Fun-da-mental, Loop Guru and Apollo 440 which brings out the dance element not especially evident on the original.

As Clint explained: "We had built up quite a few remixes and originally we wondered if we should release another single off the album. In the end we decided to use those remixed for the new album. Remixes can be a bit hit and miss but I think this works really well."

"Our music works on a lot of different layers and most of the people pulled out things that interested them for their particular track."

The remix album is currently in vogue, a natural progression from the alternative versions that fill up CD singles these days. Only last month Massive Attack and Carleen Anderson released remixes of their recent albums, following the example set by Galliano last year.

But is this merely a cynical way of getting fans to buy the same album twice?

"We are not putting a gun to anyone's head to buy it," Clint counters. "I don't think people would buy it if they thought it was repetitive."

He has a point, for Two Fingers My Friends is in places so different to the original to be an album in its own right, reflecting as it does the essential eclecticism of the Poppies.

That extends to the British tour the band is about to embark on. Joining them on the bill are spiky neo-punk band SMASH and the world music dance group Loop Guru - pretty good by anyone's standards.

"We wanted to put on an eclectic show," Clint explained. "One that reflects our own interests. Hopefully people will come to the gigs early so that they can see all three bands."

 Following the British tour there is a trek around Australia lined up and perhaps another tour of America. Then there is the possibility of some remixes or production work.

With alternative, experimental music now being embraced by the mainstream, PWEI would seem well placed to exploit that, although commercial success has never been high on the group's agenda.

As Clint observed: "I suppose Nirvana showed you could still make alternative music and still sell lots of records. We don't really need all that. Sure it would be nice if we were really big but it's not our main concern, we just want to be creative and do what we want to do."