Sarah Shannon

1	Down 1:54
2	I'll Run Away 5:40
3	Call You on the Telephone 3:45
4	Anyone 3:14
5	What's Mine 3:07
6	Looked to the Sky 4:13
7	When You Live Life Alone 6:37
8	Heaven Got Wider 3:02
9	Are You Far Enough 4:33
10	Can't You See 4:23

Barnes & Noble

Sweet-voiced Sarah Shannon got her start with indie-pop stalwarts Velocity Girl, where her quietly on-key singing fought for time amid pogoing bass lines and feedbacking guitars. She goes solo with this winsome self-titled debut, which she wrote and recorded with Blake Westcott, known in indie circles as the drummer for emo group Pedro the Lion. Fans of both Velocity Girl and Pedro the Lion will be surprised by Shannon's lush, piano-driven pop, which is more post-Carole King than post-grunge. Case in point: the tuneful "I'll Run Away," which has a swaying, neatly harmonized chorus and -- gasp! -- a flugelhorn solo. Like her "orch-pop" peers the High Llamas and Rufus Wainwright, Shannon loves dressing up her contemplative love songs with bright horn and shimmering string arrangements, but the focus here is on her understated soprano, which shines in the spotlight of the dramatic "When You Live Life Alone." Elsewhere, she trades Broadway pretensions for the garage on the Hammond organ-propelled "What's Mine" and hearkens back to her indie-pop roots on "Are You Far Enough." But it's bouncy retro tunes such as "Call You on the Telephone" and "Can't You See," glowing with a Mary Tyler Moore-like charisma, that will keep fans coming back for more. Lydia Vanderloo

All Music Guide

In Velocity Girl, Sarah Shannon and her boys were indie pop treasures during the first half of the 1990s, so breaking up the band in 1996 didn't seem fit for fans. Shannon yearned to bring her vocal sweetness to another level, and with Pedro the Lion's Blake Wescott she crafted something lush and tangible for her debut solo album. Approaching the end of her roaring twenties and being lost with or without love is her script. She allows her indie rock form to explore vivacious harmonies and grand instrumentation. It's simple and bold, but stylish. Think Burt Bacharach and Carole King. It's comforting in spots and high-spirited all over, and Shannon is confident with such a move. "I'll Run Away" swirls with feathery horn arrangements for something jazzy. The smoothness of Shannon's candied vocals continues on the enchanting "Anyone," but she gets jaunty as well. The upbeat "Call You on the Telephone" pokes fun at loneliness with a bittersweet outlook, and the classic pop fun of "Are You Far Enough" suggests that Shannon's heart is on her sleeve. She desperately wants someone to notice. "Can't You See" is innocent and painfully obvious, but comically so. Sarah Shannon sings about the things people only lament about to their best friends. She's made an album for the hopeless romantic in everyone, and it's delightful. MacKenzie Wilson

The New Yorker

The best part of the record is Shannon's wonderful voice, which makes each song a gem. John J. Donohue