Turn-ons

Ian Curtis once predicted that "love will tear us apart," yet the Turn-ons have decided to take a less prophetic route and go with 20-20 hindsight. In this five-song EP, their second release (first was 2001's self-titled full-length), they showcase more of their swaggering glam pop, à la T. Rex and '70s Bowie, with plenty of Suede, Ride and Television touchstones as well. It's classic guitar rock anthems that soar to dreamy heights with a few crying, melancholic strings to help lift their tunes up to that spaced-out place. Lead man Travis DeVries's lyrics are most of the time sub-par, yet here is a case where how the words are sung is strong enough to make you not care about what those words are; his sleepy nasal whine so perfectly imitates the guitar whine (or vice-versa) that the two sounds could be confused, at times. Theirs is a sound that's been produced many times over, harkening back to the glam guitar gods. But it's apparently enough for Peter Buck to call them "simply my favourite new Seattle band" and for residents of that city to vote the Turn-ons "Best Local Music Act" in a CitySearch online poll. Is Seattle back?