If the tall tale about the White Stripes being a husband and wife guitar/drumming team hadn't been exploded by the news that Jack and Meg are actually brother and sister, Viva Voce might have found themselves called copycats. As it is, Portland duo Anita and Kevin Robinson really are married and, although they use similar instrumentation to the Stripes, the roles are reversed.

Here, Anita is the frontperson, playing one of those unwieldy twin-necked guitars traditionally the preserve of ghastly prog rock bands. Meanwhile her husband plays aggressive drums and what can be best described as a human-audible dog whistle that makes eerie high-pitched noises.

They make an enormous sound which could hardly be further away from the Stripes: something like the Jesus and Mary Chain produced by Phil Spector, with Breeders harmonies and a widescreen, slightly damaged quality which recalls the Midnight Cowboy soundtrack. The sound is sculpted around Anita's fragile, sensual vocals ("I've waited for you all day, let's run away" she sings to a bewitched audience), aided by some astonishing resourcefulness. Her husband pounds away at a bass drum while playing an acoustic guitar. One song begins with him whistling like a postman.

Their stunning, simple, strangely innocent melodies are often framed by walls of noise. The musical telepathy between the pair is enlivened by occasional, comical marital spats. While Anita politely thanks the audience, Kevin gruffly announces: "two... two, testing".

Currently attracting small but wildly enthusiastic audiences, the forthcoming typically expansive double album Lovers, Lead the Way/This Heat Can Melt Your Brain might kickstart the adulation enjoyed by the similarly uncategorisable Arcade Fire. And if Kevin persists with the instrumentation, Viva Voce might find themselves playing to armies of besotted humans and equally mesmerised dogs.

· At 53 Degrees, Preston (01772 893000), tonight, then touring.