There is always Habari, the newer, modular “microkernel”, modern PHP based, Apache-licensed CMS/blogging platform. Since it’s PHP, it features the same easy deployability. But it has stagnated in the last years and only recently has development taken up speed again. If you’re interested in hacking on something like that, drop by irc.freenode.net #habari or mail to habari-dev@googlegroups.com.