On British television there is a commercial for a new yoghurt called Perle de Lait in the commercial a woman makes a tastes-sour, unhappy, before face when eating yoghurt, however once she has tried the perfectly creamy, silky smooth Perle de Lait yoghurt she has a warm, happy, glowing after face, very similar to a post-orgasm face -BTW it’s actually fabulous yoghurt. And that’s what The Ruse’s newest album Love Sex Confusion is. The musical equivalent of afterglow; the after Perle de Lait face. It’s a perfect example of their rich, creamy, silky smooth blend of pop-rock melodies and throaty, post-grunge vocals. The kind of luscious sounds that makes you feel relaxed and quivery. Love Sex Confusion begins with the albums first single “Can’t Stop the strongest track on the album, but not by much. With a rhythmic-pounding bass line, catchy riff and frontman John Dauer’s powerful, husky, overtly sensual vocals. Next is “Sweetness” another punchy, riff-driven concoction with buttery, caramel vocals. On “Glitter Not Gold”, in addition to the normal monumental scope of the Ruse’s sound, there is the fantastically catchy chorus “You know and I know/ If you go then I go where you go”. You’ll find yourself singing those lyrics throughout the day. Make sure you also pay attention to “Dance On Your Grave” more riffy, punchy goodness and promises to dance on your grave because, according to Dauer “the dead can’t talk”. It’s difficult to pick any one stand-out track from such a strong album, but my favourite song by far is the coolest – and by cool I mean mellow – track on Love Sex Confusion. “Took So Long” is a lullaby of a love song. Acoustic guitar, powerful melancholy vocals and chilled bass lines all add to the heartbreaking quality of this song. Dauer’s vocals are achingly sweet when he nearly weeps the opening lyrics “These eyes have seen enough/ To know when it’s time to stop /And these hands can’t hold you up /They’re much too old , they’re much too rough”. The Ruse is one of those once in a lifetime bands. When you are writer and/or lover of music, once in your lifetime, if you’re lucky, you will stumble across a band early in their career who you know are destined for greatness; and The Ruse are such a band. If you want to get in on the ground floor – so you can say you liked them when – then you want to hear Love Sex Confusion. You can download it from Amazon or their websiteor on their MySpace space. By www.seattlepi.com Another review: After releasing three excellent albums independently, The Ruse is back doing it all over again, and still without any major backing. It’s amazing that these guys still remain unsigned and don’t have countless hit songs playing all over rock and top 40 radio, even if they’ve been played all over MTV’s reality programming. Regardless of that, the fact still remains that these guys can put together some great rock tunes that aren’t over the top and fell just as mainstream as everything being played on air these days. Any fan of bands such as Lifehouse, Snow Patrol, or Our Lady Peace can get into songs on this album. It all starts off with a rock jam called “I Can’t Stop” which is one of their best songs to date. “Apache” is probably the hardest edged song on the album, while “Glitter Not Gold” could compete at the top of the rock charts with the big guns. They turn on their slower side in a few songs as well, showing off their range as musicians. Their catalogue up until now should have been enough to turn a few heads and open a few ears, but this time the band has pulled out the stops and it should garner some huge success and recognition, more than they have seen up until now.