Former Rodan/Retsin/Sonora Pines member (and occasional Ida co-conspirator) O'Neil has been putting out good solo records since the turn of the new millennium, and A Ways Away is yet another - her sixth or eighth, depending on whose discography you find most accurate. Often somber and melancholy yet never true downers, these quiet songs subtly evoke images of everything from rainy-day children's choirs to chilled-out '60s campfire singalongs without ever appearing to do too much on the surface. That's O'Neil's true gift: what in lesser hands might come off as mellow background music gently worms its way from your subconscious to the front of your brain, first distracting then enthralling you with the associations it conjures. There's a fragility on display here that makes you want to take care of O'Neil's material, and take it to heart. - Scott Harrell