Steve Turner

Steve Turner earned his primary recognition as lead guitarist for the grunge pioneers Mudhoney, yet he also pursued multiple side projects across the years. These included the nervy garage-punkers the Fall-Outs, the hard-edged blues-rockers the Monkeywrench, the thunderously obnoxious Thrown Ups, and New Original Sonic Sound, an all-star Sonics tribute band featuring members of Mudhoney, Girl Trouble, and the Young Fresh Fellows. Turner served as an early U.S. champion of the work of Billy Childish and operated the Super-Electro label to broaden exposure for several of Seattle’s more deserving acts.

His debut solo album marked a notable departure: the 2003 release Searching for Melody arrived as a primarily acoustic set in which Turner embraced folk-rock without irony or assistance from his well-known stomp-box collection. A longtime fan of classic singer/songwriter material by his own admission, he recorded the album after Mudhoney shifted to part-time status following the conclusion of their Reprise Records period. Turner described the resulting sound as the outcome of learning to sing and play guitar simultaneously, an approach he had never employed with Mudhoney. An EP titled A Beautiful Winter appeared in early 2004, with a second full-length anticipated later that same year. Outside his musical endeavors, Turner devotes time to landscaping and gardening work.