Artist: Ray LaMontagne
Album: Ouroboros
Bitrate: 237kbps avg
Quality: EAC Secure Mode / LAME 3.98.4 / -V0 / 44.100Khz
Label: RCA
Genre: Folk
Size: 71.21 megs
PlayTime: 0h 39min 40sec total
Rip Date: 2016-03-04
Store Date: 2016-03-04
Track List:
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01. Part One - Homecoming 8:29
02. Part One - Hey, No Pressure 6:34
03. Part One -The Changing Man 4:13
04. Part One - While It Still Beats 4:10
05. Part Two - In My Own Way 6:36
06. Part Two - Another Day 3:05
07. Part Two - A Murmuration of 2:33
Starlings
08. Part Two - Wouldn't It Make A 4:00
Lovely Photograph
Release Notes:
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Ray LaMontagneÆs career is impressive, if for nothing but his continued success
in the face of his own idiosyncrasies. After several songs from his debut
Trouble became the soundtracks to shows like GreyÆs Anatomy, he began to follow
his own whims away from standard folk-rock fare. His 2014 album Supernova,
produced by The Black KeysÆ Dan Auerbach, was a heady trip of an album, all
sixties-styled psychedelic rock. Ouroboros continues to follow this muse to its
logical conclusion, with itÆs in lengthy tracks, prog-inspired echoes, and
two-sided structure.
Ray LaMontagne OuroborosRecorded with production from My Morning JacketÆs Jim
James, itÆs easy to see that bandÆs spaced-out textures and aimless
song-structures represented on Ouroboros. Lead single Hey, No Pressure sees
LaMontagneÆs breathy vocals contrasted against a growling lead guitar riff, and
surrounded by atmospheric effects. The track is spacious, and itÆs easy to get
lost in its six-and-a-half minute sprawl. The track leading off the second side
of the record û In My Own Way û is its exact opposite, relaxed and emotional,
even as LaMontagne boasts ôIÆll spend the day in my own wayö. The songÆs airy
spaces conjure both relief and melancholy in equal measure, and the album takes
its power from this dichotomy. Is the jagged guitar in the pre-chorus a
celebration of independence, or a condemnation of isolation?
The weakest track is actually the opener, Homecoming. Whilst it begins with
moody pianos and echoes, the track simply lacks the depth to maintain interest
throughout what is almost nine minutes. The opening minute and closing one are
separated by little besides a light drum beat, and the song lacks a sense of
development as a consequence. ItÆs an example of the albumÆs laid-back
atmosphere working against it, and outstaying its welcome if the listener isnÆt
quickly immersed in its groove.
Ouroboros maintains LaMontagneÆs trajectory away from his early pop work, and
towards increasingly challenging and psychedelic territory. He at his best when
he lets the emotion of his songwriting become outsized and dramatic, like in In
My Own Way. Whilst the apparent aimlessness of some tracks becomes overbearing,
the rest of the album is so smooth and lush that it more than makes up for it.