Live Report: Ray LaMontagne at the Bord Gais Enegry Theatre

As Ray LaMontagne casually strolls onto the dimly lit stage, his face barely visible when he picks up his guitar. Accompanied only by his bass player/back-up vocalist, a dead silence descends among the eager crowd as he opens with a stripped back version of ‘No Other Way’.

Stood in front of a mock-up of what looks like the Arc de Triomphe, LaMontagne’s humble stage arrangement brings an air of intimacy which would be felt throughout the rest of the night’s performance. LaMontagne not only has an impressive vocal range but encompasses the rare ability to utterly captivate the audience through his lyrics and mysterious demeanour. His breathy vocals and Bob Dylan guitar style shines through on ‘Beg, Steal or Borrow’ and the addition of the harmonica on ‘In My Own Way’ and ‘Like Rock and Roll Radio’ send ripples of country and western throughout the theatre.

LaMontagne rarely addresses the crowd apart from a few nods of appreciation after each round of applause. On the rare occasions that he does speak, it is only to sheepishly thank the devoted crowd. While Lamontagne is a man of few words he allows the music to do the talking, as his energy slowly grows throughout the night. Introductions to songs are non-existent but also unnecessary as the crowd instantly recognise the intro to the deeply emotive ‘Such a Simple Thing’ and his unexpectedly more upbeat ‘Supernova’.

After returning to the stage for the encore, LaMontagne nervously announces “We’re gonna do one more song for you” which is immediately followed by a member of the normally reserved crowd uncharacteristically shouting, “Please make it two!”. Ending his set with a haunting rendition of ‘Wouldn’t it Make a Lovely Photograph’ Ray takes a final bow in front of a standing ovation. Leaving his crowd reeling after a set lasting just over an hour it’s obvious why the New Hampshire born folk singer has such an ardent following.