Ray LaMontagne’s sophomore RCA album, “Til the Sun Turns Black,” is only three months old, but the singer/songwriter from New England already has his sights set on his next effort.
“Oh, yes, very much,” LaMontagne, who’s currently touring in support of “Til the Sun Turns Black,” tells Billboard.com. “I don’t want to tell you, but I’m already thinking about it and working on a new batch of stuff and starting to get excited about the feel of the next record. I’ve got a pretty clear idea of what it’s gonna feel like.”
And while LaMontagne is guarding the specifics, one wonders if it will be much of a departure as “Til the Sun Turns Black” was from his lauded 2004 debut, “Trouble.” “I don’t know. We’ll see,” he says. “It’s early in the process, but I’m feeling excited and interested, and that’s always a good sign.”
LaMontagne says the writing for the next album — which he says has been entirely on the road — is at least following a pattern similar to his first two records. “I don’t have set times when I write or anything like that,” he explains. “I never pick up the guitar unless I have an idea, unless I’m hearing and melody and I want to find it. Otherwise I leave it be.”
The New Hampshire-born LaMontagne, who now resides in Maine, isn’t sure if he’ll put anything else out between “Til the Sun Turns Black” and the next album. He filmed and recorded a pair of solo shows this fall at London’s Union Chapel but doesn’t know if they’ll be released. “As for documenting the other shows,” he adds, “we do that anyway. I don’t think there’s been a show we haven’t recorded. But I don’t know if any of them will see the light of day as a CD or DVD or anything.”
