Tara Jane O'Neil - In Circles

Amid the hoopla surrounding strong 2006 releases from female musicians like Neko Case, Chan Marshall, Isobel Campbell, Ane Brun, Jolie Holland, and Beth Orton, the most affecting of the bunch may just be Tara Jane O'neil's In Circles. Recorded in empty wooden houses around her current hometown of Portland, OR, In Circles' songs seem to arise out of the forest, rivers, sea, and dramatic vistas of the Pacific Northwest as though part of the aural and scenic landscape. O'neil mostly eschews the twangy accents and full-band sound of 2004's You Sound, Reflect here, resulting in airier, less dense, and more delicate arrangements. Read More