As far as Breeders side projects go, 100 Watt Smile ranks somewhere above the Kelley Deal 6000 and significantly below the Amps. Of course, this fails to address the real issue at hand: namely, when the hell is there going to be a new Breeders album?! I'm sick of all these half- assed side projects. They only serve to remind me that Last Splash, while a pretty half- assed album itself, possesses a wonderful, almost intangible vibe that its spinoffs invariably fail to duplicate.

Of course, there's some debate over whether 100 Watt Smile can be called a Breeders side project at all. After all, frontwoman Carrie Bradley has spent more time as a member of San Francisco's geeky folk-pop band Ed's Redeeming Qualities than as an occasional violinist for the Breeders. But there's quite a bit of musical incest going on here; the Breeders covered Ed's Redeeming Qualities' "Drivin' On 9," and as if to return the favor, 100 Watt Smile's full- length debut And Reason Flew carries a heavy Breeders influence. Too heavy, in fact.

I'd like to give 100 Watt Smile the benefit of the doubt and not accuse them of being ripoff artists, but just try listening to "Dewlaps" and "If You Won't Too" and tell me that they don't sound uncannily like Breeders throwaways. Bradley not only imitates Kim Deal's vocals with eeri precision, but her songwriting steals several pages from the Breeders' songbook (and not the good pages, either). In other places, Bradley attempts to return to the goofy charms of Ed's Redeeming Qualities, but only really succeeds in doing so on "Furry." Most of the songs on And Reason Flew bounce along cheerfully without ever delivering a memorable hook or chorus, as if 100 Watt Smile expected to sustain an album on good- naturedness alone.

It's bizarre that Bradley could have taken part in two vibrant, charismatic bands and still turn out such an unengaging album. The folky, low-key quirkiness she gleaned from ERQ doesn't translate well into 100 Watt Smile's rock- band setup (and her violin playing in this context tends to conjure up the unfortunate specter of Tracy Bonham). At the same time, the most appealing parts of the Breeders-- Kim Deal's sassy- rock- chick shtick and uncanny knack for creating pop hooks out of thin air-- are nowhere to be found. Curiously disappointing.

-Nick Mirov