Change Is Good: Ray LaMontagne

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WHEN RAY LAMONTAGNE returns to the studio in February, one familiar face will be missing: producer Ethan Johns, who helmed the boards for LaMontagne's first three albums.

"It's complicated; it's hard to explain," LaMontagne said of taking over producer responsibilities. "Just to put it very simply, there's lots of concessions you have to make, the more cooks you have in the kitchen. At a certain point, I just feel like, I guess, it's just time for change."

After three albums over which the raspy-voiced singer has evolved — from the rootsy "Trouble" to the dark and emotional "Till the Sun Turns Black" to last year's joyous, full-band affair, "Gossip in the Grain" — fans expect an even starker shift. But LaMontagne isn't ready to talk about which direction he's chosen for the album, which he hopes to have out by next summer.

But if the orchestral shows he's playing with the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra at Strathmore and in Baltimore are any indication, a change is coming.

"It's kind of a nice way to sort of tie up these three records and sort of say goodbye to them in my own head," he said. "It's kind of a nice bookend to the three records. I feel a sense of closure."

Not that he's eliminating them from his live shows in the future — it's just LaMontagne's way of putting it.

"I can't ever completely write them off," he said. "There's a lot of songs that people want to hear. There's a certain emotional attachment to those records to me — where I was and where I have been for the past seven years. It's been a bit of a trip for me. It gets reflected in the material. It's been a really rewarding seven years, but it's been difficult at times as well.

"But also, I just feel like there's something different in the way I'm approaching songwriting now," he added. "It is more from a place of happiness. And I really feel blessed — I really feel lucky and blessed to be making music."

» Music Center at Strathmore, 5301 Tuckerman Lane, Bethesda; Thu., Oct. 15, 8 p.m., sold out; 301-581-5100. (Grosvenor-Strathmore)

Photo courtesy Dan Winters