Tara Jane O'Neil and Daniel Littleton
Music for a Meteor Shower (Tigerstyle)
By Jim Keller
Published: November 4th, 2002 | 10:12am
I must admit that I am secretly waiting for Tara Jane O'Neil to contribute to something as rocking as her old band Rodan, but until then I have resolved to listen to anything she puts out. Her credits include Retsin, The Sonora Pine, and the aforementioned Rodan, and now that she's teamed up with Daniel Littleton, a man with as much experience as herself (The Hated, Ida), one has got to wonder what the product will be.
Recorded in the course of a little over a year, Music for a Meteor Shower is just that -- a fitting soundtrack to listen to with your sweetheart while gazing at the celestial skies. Although it is a completely improvisational album, some tracks seem to take the shape of full-fledged songs and stand out among the rest. The 3 minute and 28 second "Ooh La La...," for example, seems to peg O'Neil and Littleton as lovers singing to one another under the sweet Parisian sky. With nothing accompanying them but their acoustic guitars and a twinkling xylophone, they play their parts well. Another track that has the power to stand on its own is "Feedback Annie." At first powered by a warm guitar strum and delightful picking, the track lulls the listener into a dream-like state. Once the listener gives into the song she is momentarily interrupted by the see-saw of feedback, but not long enough to discourage, as O'Neil and Littleton return the warm guitar sounds they robbed us of as gently as putting a baby back in its cradle.
A first glance at the track listing might lead you to think that O'Neil and Littleton have provided a key of sorts to their record. Songs like "What Was She Thinking" and "What Was He Thinking," and "Sweet Neck" and "Broke Neck" hint at some kind of instrumental puzzle to figure out. However, there is only a small similarity between "Juliette" and "The Disembodied Juliette"; both contain Middle Eastern-style wailing that I can only guess is done by O'Neil. As for what he and she "thought," echoes of a piece that Sonic Youth used for the soundtrack of the late '80s film Made in USA come to mind.
Perhaps the most inviting aspect of this record is that it is so relaxing to hear. O'Neil's and Littleton's acoustic guitars act as two arms that wrap a warm blanket around you while you stare at the cruel painted ceiling and imagine that it is the same starlit sky under which they recorded. "Sweet Neck" exemplifies this as O'Neil's and Littleton's guitars circle around each other, getting acquainted while we acquaint ourselves with the music.
Issue #35
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