Tara Jane O'Neil - Peregrine
(Quarterstick)
Tara Jane O'Neil was the bassist for the phenomenal Louisville band, Rodan. Since then, she has been found playing in Retsin and The Sonora Pine. Tara recorded this solo album in her New York City apartment over the summer of 1999 with occasional help from a handful of friends. Using a wide variety of acoustic instruments (acoustic guitar, piano, melodica, violin, and flute), she achieves a very smooth, relaxed mood in her songs. My complaint with The Sonora Pine is that the songs and instrumentation are too complex and muddy. Retsin, while not overly complex, are too country for my tastes.The solo album is arranged simply and has no twinges of country, which compliments Tara's songwriting perfectly. "Peregrine" has a few really great songs. "Another Sunday" is a great instrumental that finally gets within throwing distance of Rodan's "Toothfairy Retribution Manifesto." Though, despite how much I love this release and how many times I've been listening to it since I got it, I can't really recall parts of the album, so some of the songs, as they are recorded, don't leave much of an impression. But, I recently saw her play live, and some of these songs
that didn't leave an impression had much more definition and purpose when played live.
I really look forward to hearing more songs Tara writes along these lines. Much more than a new Sonora Pine or Retsin album.
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