Description
Now that singer/songwriter Ray LaMontagne has gotten the space rock of his previous two releases out of his system, it’s back to basics on studio album number eight. He strips the sound back, way back, on this entirely solo recording. The tactic is implied by its Monovision title and emphasized by the old-school reel-to-reel tape recorder that adorns the cover.
Montagne taps into his inner Tim Buckley, Cat Stevens, early Neil Young and Van Morrison on the often hushed, folk-soul of these ten tracks. Barely there percussion, harmonica, acoustic guitar and of course LaMontagne’s supple, slightly grainy vocals are overdubbed to create lovely, even delicate songs that feel like they were recorded in the early seventies folk-pop explosion. Titles like “Highway to the Sun,” “Summer Clouds” and “Weeping Willow” are further influenced by the Donovan songbook.
There’s soothing, but never clichéd warmth in this retro-style. Both LaMontagne’s craftsmanship in the composition of these songs and his easygoing, unaccompanied playing will come as comfort food to established followers who should welcome this most organic return to his roots.
