The brain trust of Outrageous Cherry, the shockingly talented singer/songwriter Matthew Smith, has been steadily releasing CD upon CD of shuffling guitar pop for the past 13 years. Yet, this is probably the first time that many of you have come across the name of this band. For many bands, this is just the way it is. Either they have pushed themselves into a well-worn niche thanks to their music or they have no interest in playing the "game" when it comes to the music industry. Although I think Smith and his cohorts could safely fall into the latter category, due to their releasing records on any number of smaller independent labels (Bar None, Poptones, etc.), I also sense that the group is doing something gloriously wrong to be repelling the world's attention.

Part of the blame lies in the band's ideas about drumming. Over the years, the drum stool has been occupied by a number of young ladies who were only given a rudimentary drum kit that doesn't feature both a bass drum or cymbals of any kind. Many bands have made the most of restrictions such as these (Violent Femmes, Throwing Muses) but the chugging '60s-style beats on each song practically screams for something more. Current drummer, Carey Gustafson, gamely does her best to add some kind of variation to the mix, but more often than not sounds like a bored Meg White.

Another issue comes with the songwriting. Smith, the principal songwriter for the group, has an ear for a good melody that rivals such higher profile artists like Carl Newman. Yet, he manages to negate all of his good work by matching up those melodies with half-hearted lyrics like, "Stay happy/though the world is a ball of destruction/stay happy when it don't seem to function" (from the title track), and "Just her lost planet eyes/and her magazine lips/I'll stare I don't care/which way the coin flips" (from "New Creature").

The final blow to the CD is the production quality. This self-produced affair has all the sonic wonder of a GarageBand demo. The only instrument that doesn't end up sounding muffled and restrained is the tambourine that manages to rise above the leaden mix on a number of songs.

It's a shame to hear a band with so much potential put so many stumbling blocks in front of them like Outrageous Cherry does. If ever there was a band to nominate for a sit-down with an uber-producer like Rick Rubin in hopes of setting them on the right path, this would be that band.