Artist: Ray Bonneville
Album: At King Electric
Label: Stonefly
Release Date: 9.7.2018
Ray Bonneville is perhaps coming off his career best, 2014’s Easy Gone with this, his ninth studio release, At King Electric. As you may know, the Canadian-born, Austin-based Bonneville is a blues poet, well respected by his peers and fans for his unique guitar playing, harp playing, and hypnotic grooves. Here, he continues to take his already gifted songwriting to a new record label, following four Red House releases. The album takes its title from the studio where it was recorded in his home town. Several years ago Bonneville described how he learned his relaxed technique, “There’s something about the heat and humidity that makes people slow down, he says. “New Orleans is where I learned to take my time, allow space between the notes so the songs could really groove.”
The groove here comes from the core trio of Bonneville, Richie Lawrence on keyboards (mostly electric piano) and Andre Bohren on drums. Long-time cohort Gurf Morlix plays only twice, once on guitar and once on bass. Noted Austin keyboardist Stefano Intelisano brings his B3 to “Until Such a Day,” the same track that features Morlix on guitar. It’s the same stripped-down sound that has become Bonneville’s signature. He also continues to rely on Justin Douglas for production. Why argue with success?
Besides his signature sound, Bonneville is adept at character portraits of downtrodden characters reaching for hope amidst despair. In the opener, “Waiting on the Night,” the protagonist seems to be seeking darkness so that he can escape. Bonneville talks about these songs, “I guess you could say that the songs, the records, and the folks I meet out on the road have been my family. I get to know the characters in my songs as they reveal themselves to me over the hours, days and nights of writing.”
“Next Card to Fall” has several characters. “Papachulalay” has one who is emotionally rescued by a street parade. A reflective addict mourns in “Codeine.” One of the most vivid is the prison inmate who calls his estranged brother as his release date nears in “The Day They Let Me Out.” He captures the lost and destitute wanderer in “It’ll Make a Hole in You.” When he’s not talking about hard living, he has a way of putting deeper meaning into issues most of face at one time or another. His road-weary voice is instantly credible when he sings, “See how easy a tender heart can break” in “Tender Heart” or lamenting the past in “Forever Gone.” The sparse instrumentation usually follows a rhythmic, repetitive groove, allowing the guitar, harmonica, and piano notes to punctuate the lyrics, and at times linger in sustained suspension. This also frames the songs, allowing his narratives to clearly shine through. That’s why his peers dub him a “song and groove man.”
Every so often some light creeps in but Bonneville lives mostly in a dark world. As he says, he’s never had children, so his family is comprised of songs, fellow musicians, dear friends and fans. And his family continues to grow, as this album is every bit as good as his previous efforts.
—Jim Hynes
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