For many years now Louis Thompson-Munn, better known as Louis TM, has been at the top of the list for session keyboardists in Aotearoa. The Pōneke keyboard player / vocalist has played in numerous local ensembles including The Jive Kiwis and Wellington City Shake-‘Em-On-Downers, as well as backing national heavyweights like Ria Hall and Fly My Pretties. With a wealth of experience under his belt and a handful of successful singles, one of which has been picked up by soul DJs around the globe, Louis TM takes his turn in the limelight with the release of his first album, ‘Shelter for a Broken Soul’. He talked with Jasper West.
Just Louis and his home piano is what it took to write these 10 faithful soul songs on ‘Shelter for a Broken Soul’.
“There were some tunes that definitely just poured out,” Louis describes, detailing the hard hitting opening track I Thought It Was Love. “It starts off with a real classic low octave piano bass line. Stylistically, that’s quite a thing in soul music, to have this unison bass line and octaves. I wanted to write something in that sort of vein, so I pretty much just wrote the progression and all the chords for that, more or less in one sitting.”
He’s been writing new music for a number of years now, trying out different takes on soul but Louis admits it wasn’t until more recently that he finally gravitated towards the sound he feels most comfortable in. Having grown up listening to classic soul canon artists like Ray Charles, Wilson Pickett, Sam and Dave, more recently he’s been taking inspiration from the modern soul resurgence including musicians like Aaron Frazer and Kelly Finnigan.
“I just try to harbour all of those inspirations as well as still sound like myself,” he notes. “You’ve got to create that sound where it stands here in this space and place.”
Somewhere between the slightly edgy modernness and the traditional soul of his palette is where ‘Shelter for a Broken Soul’ sits.
The tunes are faithful to their sound yet extremely listenable for modern music consumers. Each piece has distinctive elements in the feel and timbre, making it stand out in what really is a soul album. Hooks are introduced with confidence but not over played.
“I want to write little ear-wormy kind of things, stuff that’s got a memorable catch, you know? Something that makes it sound iconic, but you’re not really slaving to that,” he verifes, illustrating by asking, “Have you ever been to a show, walked out of there and like an hour later you just can’t hum a single song that you’ve heard? I’d like to think if someone left my gig and hadn’t seen me before, they’d leave with something in their head!”
From the bass line in second single Opportunity Knocks to the horns in the title, to the guitars in This Flame Ain’t The Same, his album is packed full of such earworms. It’s not just about the parts, but the way they speak to one and other. How they all occupy a well thought-out space that is clear enough for the listener to bounce between, like a socialite at a party for the ears.
In the vinyl tradition the last song of side A is a down low slow jam that cuts deep in the emotions. Brother talks about the love two friends share and how important is it is for men to be able to express that to each other.
“This guy I’ve known since we were literally six years old, he lived on the other side of the block from me growing up,” Louis reveals with a warm look backwards. “We went to primary school together and we played sports and music all through our high school years. When I went to uni we lived in different countries and that sort of thing, but no matter how much time the two of us spend away, when we get back together again and catch up it’s just like we never parted.”
A deep sense of this kinship is heard in the emotion of Louis’ voice when he sings; ‘I’ve been blessed with the best, Yes it’s true… But a friend just ain’t you, No, You’re my brother.’ His raw delivery of the verses contrast the luscious and bodied harmonies of the chorus, bringing a goose bump inducing sense of tension and release.
“For that the band only did two takes, actually. So the one that’s on the record is, I think, the first one.”
Some people would call that a golden coldie. Recorded at Surgery Studios by Dr. Lee Prebble (The Black Seeds, The Phoenix Foundation) and released on Louis’ own Diver Records label, ‘Shelter for a Broken Soul’ was produced (mostly) in a traditional way, as Louis recounts.
“We were just trying to capture that sort of band sound and get that magic take within the unit so that everything else on top could fit perfectly. Sometimes you might do four in a row and the first one’s just, you know, the first pancake. Two and three are good, and they’re usually the ones that we just all hit. But then if you do four, five, six, seven after that, you almost don’t really get much out. You’re not really making any gains after that.”
Getting a perfect take in three passes has a lot to do with the top shelf calibre of musicians Louis TM has in his band. Local legend and blues cat Chris Armour (Miles Calder, Odessa) lays the top six strings of the rhythm down, followed by Steve Moodie on bass and Nick George on drums. Not to be outdone, these rhythm tracks are painted with the exquisite vocal colours of Miriam Alice, Rachel Mair and Lisa Tomlins. Last but certainly not least, the gravy atop this plate of soul food is in the horns performed by Ben Hunt (trumpet) and Kaito Walley (trombone).
The cultural capital of Aotearoa has been Louis’ home for over 15 years now.
“When I first came to town you couldn’t hīkoi past a café without Fat Freddy’s ‘Based On A True Story’ blasting, awesome jazz bands playing all over the city, and it was just vibrant. Things look and feel different these days for obvious reasons, but all those creative and amazing musicians and artists are still doing their thing here, and that’s never going to change. Pōneke and the creative are bound in a cosmic tie, I’m sure of it!”
With his long history of being a side man for a wide range of artists it’s really no surprise that Louis takes to the stage like a fish to water.
“I feel probably more ‘seasoned’ and able to take on the live show performances without too much stress or worry now. I mostly just wanted to make a good soul record first, and then I can do my best with what I’ve learnt performing with others.”
Live performances with his band bring unmatched professionalism and charisma, enforcing an unspoken no-bums-on-seats policy.
“The show for me is relatively dance-y and energetic, that sort of thing,” Louis chuckles. “We’ll just keep all the fun stuff in and don’t necessarily go down to the more insulated or vulnerable songs. We haven’t played Brother live, we’ve only recorded it.”
The high levels of artistry don’t stop with the audio medium, but include vivid cover pieces for each of the singles, done with his good pal Nick.
“Conceptually we tried to tie in the visual elements to the essence of the record. For I Thought It Was Love the rose is classic, leading to a native Tui taking that rose away representing Opportunity Knocks, and finally, a burnt match around some petals for This Flame Ain’t The Same, somewhat of a metaphor describing the difference in people after major life events.”
The LP cover art ties this all together – a rose-painted matchbox with one burnt match in it, seeking shelter to hide its charred self among the rest.
“Deep stuff!” Louis jokes.