Songwriter and performer Ryan Montbleau entered a new chapter of his career with the release of Growing Light in 2015. The 10-song set is bold and barrier breaking, organically blending rock, funk, soul, folk and psychedelia to create a sonic kaleidoscope where tunes like the percolating first single “Pacing Like Prince” and the cinematic title track co-exist in refracted bliss.

Growing Light is a “perfect storm” recording. The album pairs Montbleau’s most artfully crafted and sincere lyrics with vocal performances of exceptional grace and heart. The songs also benefit from the near-telepathic rapport of Montbleau and his band, which developed over a decade of touring. And those qualities are enhanced by the adventurous production of Galactic’s Ben Ellman and inventive mixing by Mikael “Count” Eldridge, who has worked with DJ Shadow, Radiohead and No Doubt. Growing Light is also poignant and personal. Montbleau’s new songs trace the bloom-and-fade cycle of finding and losing love through the arc of a relationship. They also come at the end of a decade-long era with his band – a group who came of age together while touring the jam band circuit, where the Massachusetts-born Montbleau built his initial following.

Montbleau began as a solo performer, appearing often on stage at the first House of Blues club in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and made his early recordings primarily with just his guitar. By 2006 he’d formed the Ryan Montbleau Band and was branching out of the coffeehouse and folk scene into the jam world, spending much of each year on the road.

Today Montbleau continues to maintain a busy touring schedule, dividing gigs between solo shows and concerts with various line-ups of the Ryan Montbleau Band. “I loved playing with my original band and still do, whenever we may get the chance.