"Seemingly Solid Reality" is the tenth full length studio LP from Detroit rock n' roll experimentalists Outrageous Cherry. After the critically acclaimed glam/psych miasma of 2009's "Universal Malcontents", and subsequent tours in Europe and the USA, O.C. returned to their analog cave somewhere within the Detroit city limits to record Matthew
Smith's latest batch of tunes. Keeping the recording approach somewhat primitive, the group wanted to capture the energy and excitement of their recent live performances, but in a semi-controllable studio environment.
The album was recorded on a reel-to-reel 8-track in the kitchen of a house in the same neighborhood, (and with the same architectural dimensions) as the old Motown studio. Throughout "Seemingly Solid Reality", sweet melodies and harmonies soar over the gnashing of vicious, urban Motor City guitar workouts. Motown-fueled bass and drums throb hypnotically. The lyrics weave a tapestry of hallucinatory 21st century tension over all of this, punctuated by occasional blasts of music concrete synthesizer. This time, the mood is closer to the anarchistic tendencies of the Plastic Ono Band than the Beatlesque feel of more recent Outrageous Cherry records.
When he's not fronting Outrageous Cherry, Matt Smith is often producing and sometimes playing onstage with numerous other artists. Recently he's worked with Rodriguez, Andre Williams, and Scott Morgan (ex-Rationals, Sonic's Rendezvous Band). He also produced the last two albums by late Detroit soul legend Nathaniel Mayer. Guitarist Larry Ray has played with the Spike Drivers and the Ivories. Drummer Samantha Linn has played with Little Claw and her group the Arch Mystics (also featuring Larry Ray). Bassist Sean Ellwood also plays with Don Bolles' new group the Fancy Space People. Outrageous Cherry recently got a lot of love from The New Pornographers who released a EP of Outrageous Cherry covers on Matador records titled "Togetherness - The New Pornographers play Outrageous Cherry".
Smith's latest batch of tunes. Keeping the recording approach somewhat primitive, the group wanted to capture the energy and excitement of their recent live performances, but in a semi-controllable studio environment.
The album was recorded on a reel-to-reel 8-track in the kitchen of a house in the same neighborhood, (and with the same architectural dimensions) as the old Motown studio. Throughout "Seemingly Solid Reality", sweet melodies and harmonies soar over the gnashing of vicious, urban Motor City guitar workouts. Motown-fueled bass and drums throb hypnotically. The lyrics weave a tapestry of hallucinatory 21st century tension over all of this, punctuated by occasional blasts of music concrete synthesizer. This time, the mood is closer to the anarchistic tendencies of the Plastic Ono Band than the Beatlesque feel of more recent Outrageous Cherry records.
When he's not fronting Outrageous Cherry, Matt Smith is often producing and sometimes playing onstage with numerous other artists. Recently he's worked with Rodriguez, Andre Williams, and Scott Morgan (ex-Rationals, Sonic's Rendezvous Band). He also produced the last two albums by late Detroit soul legend Nathaniel Mayer. Guitarist Larry Ray has played with the Spike Drivers and the Ivories. Drummer Samantha Linn has played with Little Claw and her group the Arch Mystics (also featuring Larry Ray). Bassist Sean Ellwood also plays with Don Bolles' new group the Fancy Space People. Outrageous Cherry recently got a lot of love from The New Pornographers who released a EP of Outrageous Cherry covers on Matador records titled "Togetherness - The New Pornographers play Outrageous Cherry".
TRACK LISTING
1. Seemingly Solid Reality (2:13)
2. Unbalanced In The City (3:12)
3. Fell (2:52)
4. My Ghetto (2:43)
5. Self-Made Monster (3:06)
6. The Happy Hologram (3:41)
7. Nothing's Changed (3:28)
8. Forces Of Evil (3:15)
9. I Like It (3:11)
10. Unamerican Girls (3:39)
11. The Unimportant Things (4:14)