Album Review - Ray LaMontagne, "Trouble" (2004)

First off, why am I reviewing an album that’s been out for 2 years? Well, for a couple of reasons. First, I was only recently made aware of this remarkable record a few weeks ago, and second, his new album will be released August 29, 2006, so I thought it timely.

So, how did I chance across this album? I was purchasing tickets to see Guster again (see this earlier post about their show at Xavier) and I saw that Ray LaMontagne was the opening act. I had never heard of Lamontagne, so I did some research to try to hear some of his music before the show. What I discovered was not only an amazing album, but an even more amazing story.

LaMontagne was working in a shoe factory in Maine and awoke one morning at 4 AM to the sounds of “Tree Top Flyer” by Stephen Stills. It proved to be a strange epiphany, because even though he had never played or sang or wrote music, he was so moved by the song that he quit his job to begin a music career. He taught himself to play and sing (”from the gut” he says, and “not through the nose”) and recorded a demo tape. One thing led to another, and he ended up in the studio where it took just 2 weeks to record Trouble. Click here for the full story about Ray.

The opening title track sets the tone with phrases like “trouble been doggin’ my soul since the day I was born” and “worry just will not seem to leave my mind alone”. Life isn’t perfect, and even when it seems like it is, worry has a way keeping a check and balance on you.

“Shelter” tells of the power of love to hurt as well as to heal, as in these phrases:

“It’s not like we planned it
You tried to stay, but you could not stand it
To see me shut down slow, as though it was an easy thing to do”

and

“I left you heartbroken, but not until those very words were spoken
Has anybody ever made such a fool out of you
It’s hard to believe it , even as my eyes do see it
The very things that make you live are killing you”

Instances of pain, which are then followed by a promise to persist and overcome in these words:

“Listen, when all of this around us’ll fall over,
I tell you what we’re gonna do
You will shelter me my love, I will shelter you”

“Jolene” delivers the emotional knockout punch, the lament of a man who endures detachment through his own faults and his reluctance to be vulnerable.

“Been so long since I seen your face,
or felt a part of this human race,
A man needs something he can hold onto,
a nine pound hammer or a woman like you,
Either of these things will do.
I ain’t about to go straight, it’s too late,
Still don’t know what love means”

The music is pure. LaMontagne doesn’t rely on studio tricks and post-mixing to create his sound. The sound is reminiscent of Van Morrison’s Moondance album, or the early Stills albums that served as his inspiration. There are string arrangements, as well as a guest appearance by Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek, that add to the sound without ever being more than just noticable. But the voice is the highlight here - always strong, even when quiet, and never out of control or beyond his range. There is a pain in his voice that suits the melancholy of the music, and when combined, create a truly unique and remarkable listening experience.

The appeal of Trouble is that it’s real. It’s believable. It isn’t full of hollow gestures and empty promises like “forever” and “till the end of time”, because those things aren’t possible. Sometimes life deals a bad hand. Sometimes love ends, and sometimes it’s your fault. The songs tell stories of things that can happen to people, and more than likely, have happened to you.

The songs on Trouble draw from the difficult experiences of his life, wrought with emotion and honesty. The words are deep, and the music is complex, but the songs - hearing them is pure and simple intimacy. I must recommend a “beginning to end” approach for initial listening, because the appeal lies in the power to capture you for 45 minutes, and remains in the lingering of the notes in your mind long after the quiet ending of the final track. Revel in the silence that will follow “All the Wild Horses” to appreciate what you’ve just heard.

I’m out-
KWass