This remarkable debut by an unknown New England singer-songwriter was one of the most welcome musical surprises of 2004. On these 10 stunning, plainspoken, sincere ruminations, Ray LaMontagne sounds like a wizened, world-weary troubadour — actually quite a compliment for a fledgling, not-yet-30-year-old artist. With just a hint of rasp (and a ton of pain and yearning) in his voice, he dives into these bucolic folk songs with the emotion and passion of a soul singer, calling to mind artists like Van Morrison or an overwrought Cat Stevens. Producer Ethan Johns, who’s worked wonders for Ryan Adams among others, spruces up these hushed ballads with low-key string arrangements and softly colors them with his own work on piano and percussion. The poignant ballad “Shelter” tugs at you with a simple melody and LaMontagne’s aching, heart-on-his-sleeve vocals; “you will shelter me, my love, and I will shelter you,” he sings plaintively, turning a declaration of love into gripping drama. On the mournful “Burn,” it’s just the singer and his acoustic guitar, desperately pleading for his lover to return. For the most part, Trouble is a heavy, somber listen, but it’s also quite captivating — an instant sad-sack classic.