Impressive production and proficient playing from developing New York musician.
Best known as a former member of The National Reserve, guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Jon LaDeau has released several collections of his own music, as well as working alongside many other artists on stage and in the studio. Originally from New Jersey, LaDeau is now resident in New York, where he recorded his fifth solo album, “Chateau LaDeau”, in his home studio.
All eight tracks are his own work, as is much of the instrumentation. Things took shape gradually, with each song being passed to co-producer David Butler in the form of demo recordings. LaDeau has featured on festival bills with Jeff Tweedy, Emmylou Harris, Sturgill Simpson, and Commander Cody, while Butler is a touring member of alternative rock band Guster, and both men have put their considerable talents to good use here.
The gentle acoustic guitar instrumental ‘Cactus Tree Boogie’ starts things off and will provide a good workout for advanced players keen to improve their chops. A pair of songs follow in which LaDeau expresses the wish to be somewhere other than the present time and place – ‘Far Away Place’ is a waltzing lament laced with organ, piano and percussion, while lead single ‘Take Me Away’ is a bassy, fuzz-filled rocker.
A highlight is ‘East Tennessee Wrecker’. There’s an insistent bass rhythm and melodic slide guitar alongside Emily Jackson’s splendid harmony vocals. ‘This Town’ features some swirling organ and with La Deau’s Dylan-esque vocal, the track sounds like an out-take from the 1965 sessions for “Highway 61 Revisited” while the guitar solo captures the spirit of George Harrison on “Abbey Road”.
Taking things down is ‘Shoot The Moon’, another instrumental, but this time on electric guitar and serving as a bridge to the two closing tracks, both love songs. ‘Heartworks’ builds a sonic texture that brings out what LaDeau describes as the intention behind the record –
“The first track is just me and a guitar. It’s the story of where I’ve come from. But this album is the story of where I’m headed, and that’s a much bigger narrative. It’s reflected in the sounds that accumulate along the way.”
The last track ‘Memory In Mind’ is a slow waltz with a Bakersfield country feel, its pained vocal giving the lonesome feel of the last man in the bar, underpinned by the tremolo-rich guitar and major to minor chord shifts. Here, as with the other five non-instrumental songs, the lyrics use simple terms. While there’s much to be said for a stripped-down approach, this may be something for the artist to develop, as the language and imagery don’t always match up to the sophistication of the playing and production found on the record. It may be a work in progress, but nevertheless Jon LaDeau and David Butler have produced a very worthwhile album.
