The sputter target includes a tantalum body having tantalum grains formed from consolidating tantalum powder and a sputter face. The sputter face has an atom transport direction for transporting tantalum atoms away from the sputter face for coating a substrate. The tantalum grains have at least a 40 percent (222) direction orientation ratio and less than a 15 percent (110) direction orientation ratio in an atom transport direction away from the sputter face for increasing sputtering uniformity, the tantalum body being free of (200) (222) direction banding detectable by Electron Back-Scattering Diffraction and wherein the sputter target has a purity of at least 99.99 (%) percent.