Tarkio formed in
Missoula, Montana in 1996. Meloy, from
Helena, had studied English at
University of Oregon at
Eugene for two years, then returned and enrolled in the creative writing program at the
University of Montana in Missoula. He recruited
banjo player Gibson Hartwell, bassist Louis Stein, and drummer Brian Collins following a meeting at an open mic night at a local coffeehouse. The band took its name from
Tarkio, Montana, a small town in the western part of the state. The band's sound has been variously compared to
The Waterboys,
Uncle Tupelo, and
Wilco. Meloy said of the early days: “We [Tarkio] had aspirations of being able to base ourselves as a band out of Missoula, Montana, like
Low is from
Duluth and
Modest Mouse is from
Issaquah [Washington], but I think we pretty quickly discovered that the reason why those bands succeeded was that they were within an hour’s drive from a major metropolitan area.” ==Band members==