Here are a couple of Oregon acts that flirt with the borders of country, jazz and pop music.

I haven't kept up with the Portland, Oregon, band Amelia since their 2004 sophomore release, After All, which I liked quite a bit. They've released a live recording in the interim, but this new one, A Long, Lovely List of Repairs, picks up where After All left off, with what seem like added layers of sophistication.

Amelia continues to make mostly languid, atmospheric alt-pop mixed intriguingly with elements of jazz, cabaret and country. Comparisons that range from Tom Waits to Cowboy Junkies, with some desert-noir Calexico influences occasionally tossed in, remain appropriate. The band is now a three-piece, with smoky-voiced drummer Teisha Helgerson still out front, Scott Weddle playing guitars and several other instruments and singing harmonies, and Jesse Emerson on bass, piano and more. Producer and string arranger Mark Orton of Tin Hat Trio also contributes a number of instruments, including some highly effective pedal steel, and a stable of Portland stalwarts, including Mike and Jill Coykendall, also help out.

The album contains 14 tracks, all originals, two of them instrumentals. Where After All contained one song in French, this one starts with one in Spanish, the atmospheric "Enemigo," its title a mash-up of the words for enemy and friend.

"Why do I feel so wonderful / that's not the way it's supposed to be..." Helgerson ponders on "Farewell," a languid, lovely song of bitter parting. This one has a dusty Calexico sound with brushed snares and a dramatic slide guitar break. Plinking banjo gives the lovely "Tragedy" a shambling feel. "Dolores" is similarly shambling, this one a slow, heavily swinging shuffle with dreamy vocals, a twangy guitar solo and noirish woodwind backing. The album's title comes from a line in the penultimate track, "Needlework," a very touching song. It's a lightly swaying waltz with lyrics about the contemplation of chores left undone as a metaphor for a life winding down.

A couple of other tracks require special mention. "After You" is a slow waltz, sparely set with just acoustic guitar, piano and brushed snare. "There's just me, and there's after you," Helgerson sings, dropping down into her lower register, which makes your ears sit up and take notice. And the final track, "Here We Are," has a playful melody. "All I see is what's in front of me, no more no less," she intones in a singsong over a lilting clarinet tune, while in the background, a guitar or banjo plucks along at an entirely different melody and tempo. It reinforces the impression that the song is by a very disturbed person, perhaps a mental patient, facing the limits of her world with a drugged equanimity.

Oh, and there are a couple of interesting instrumentals, too: "The End," an étude-like piano piece, and "Thick as Thieves" with a pentatonic violin line.

Amelia's material has grown in sophistication since their last studio outing, without leaving behind the emotional directness of the music. Helgerson seems to carry the vocal duties with more assurance, and guitarist Weddle always finds just the right sound to go with subject matter and atmosphere. A Long, Lovely List of Repairs is a highly satisfying recording.

In a similar but less complex vein is Kevin Barber's music on Burn. Barber plays gentle, jazz- and country-inflected music with lots of dark tones to it. His trio, with Dennis Caiazza on acoustic bass and Matthew Higgins on drums, is a popular act on the Oregon brewpub circuit. This album is a good example of why; it's lovely mostly light music to perfectly accent a night out with friends.

The material ranges from the minor-key George Benson-like title track to Chet Atkins-influenced country shuffles like "Hurtin' Time." Barber's gentle tenor vocals remind me a bit of Stephen Bishop, and the low-key approach to the vocals generally complements the lyrical content. There are a small handful of jazzy instrumentals, including "Stolen Moments," the uptempo workout "Underpants Spaceman Dance" and the final track, the midtempo "That's Nice." "Come Along" has a fast rockabilly rhythm and James Burton-inspired twang, and "Lullabye" has a lovely cello line behind guitar arpeggios and languid vocals. At the end, you'll probably echo the title of the final track, "That's Nice."