Aptly described in their own words as “music for people to listen to while waiting for their pizza to be microwaved”, bedroom pop quartet Cherry Syrup’s 5-track debut EP features lush instrumentals that charmingly fill out the frequency spectrum. But with the release painfully held back at certain moments by sub-par songwriting and mixing, their metaphorical pizza feels lukewarm at best.

Although resonating an inclination for mellower sounds, the group seemingly neglect their strengths in orchestrating lusciously dense atmospheres. Instead, they start their debut with two pop-ier songs. Perhaps intended to be standout tracks from the EP, the arduously bromidic ceramic head and dreaming about instead shelves the release into mediocrity. In an awkward one-two punch, uninspired lyrics on topics from wistful musings on adolescent simplicities (“What kinda feeling did you miss / Running around, feels like no one gives a shit”), to the bitterness of soured love (“...This causes empty conversations it’s true / It’s a funny story, but you won't hear two”) hastily push listeners away from an increasingly generic sound. Delivered with forgettable riffs and compounded by stiff vocals that frequently struggle to find their place in the mix, any interest quickly wanes prior to reaching the EP’s halfway point.

This opening is a shame, because Cherry Syrup manages to salvage their defrosting pizza by switching up their recipe in the EP’s second half. Leaning into stronger ingredients, the latter three songs see their rich guitar tones taking a more central role in their compositions, forming a strong foundation that allows room for its counterparts to thrive, elevating the sound of the band as a whole. Where in prior tracks they bashed heads with the stronger instrumental voicings, here vocalist Kathleen Bu’s delicate vocals find their own space to bask. Introducing simple yet compelling harmonic interplay through synth pads or supporting vocal tracks (see: sam’s song and you are not my home), the dream-pop quartet begin arranging each component of their sound comfortably, albeit a little too late in the EP. They still toe a thin line from being cloyingly generic, but the latter three songs ease much more comfortably into the group’s dynamic – with penultimate turning, turning being the best example of this. Showcasing a more tasteful flourish of their pop capabilities, catchy guitar riffs manage to save their sound in the forefront.

Despite its partial redemption, the EP still leaves an unsatisfactory aftertaste. With its opening pair of songs irreparably tearing the release into opposing dimensions to its other delicately atmospheric tracks, their debut feels like quite a shame – as the latter tracks suggest an untapped potential for their unique sound to shine. Their current half-baked sonic focus might need some more refining and sharpening – for that, Cherry Syrup might benefit from more time in the oven.

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