Not too long ago, Ray LaMontagne was strumming and emoting his way through his harrowing 2005 breakthrough song, "Trouble," before a rapt, sold-out crowd at Radio City Music Hall. Today, on break from his tour behind the new Gossip in the Grain, he's back home in his farmhouse in the wilds of western Maine. A storm is coming, and with winter settling in, LaMontagne's audience will shrink dramatically. In fact, most days he won't see anyone other than his wife, Sarah, his two sons and the sheep,...

Ray LaMontagne's voice — full of the warm yearning of a young Van Morrison — is his calling card, and he's worked it over two records of heart-wrenching balladry. But his latest finds him breaking his own mold a bit. "I Still Care for You" has a gentle Radiohead vibe; "Winter Birds" verges on psych folk. There's also a new playfulness: "Hey Me, Hey Mamma" is a goofy jug-band number,...