Louis Baker is back on stage in Mount Maunganui this month, bringing his new album Trouble as part of his first headline tour in five years.

The Wellington singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer will bring his band to Totara Street on October 23 as part of a nine-date nationwide tour, with the album released on Friday.

Baker said he was “super excited” to return to Mount Maunganui after several years away.

“I love the Mount, I love the energy there, the wairua, being around the beautiful sunshine and the coastline, it’s just stunning.”

Two years in the making, Baker said Trouble is his most personal album and explores love, loss, grief, friendship, social consciousness and personal growth.

“I think I’ve probably come into my own a little bit more as a producer and as an artist and I think I have a better sense of who I am as a person.

“This is the first full-length album I produced by myself.”

Baker said making the record helped him move away from the perfectionism that had held him back earlier in his career.

“I think when I first started, perfectionism maybe stunted my growth.

“Over the years I’ve learned to not grip so tightly.”

Baker spoke about the album’s emotional centre Mighty Tree, written following a friend’s death and inspired by the whakataukī “Kua hingate tōtara itewaonui a Tāne”.

He said the song was written to honour his friend and capture the “wairua and aroha” surrounding his tangi.

“It was very sad but also lots of aroha and togetherness with friends and whānau.”

Cover art for Trouble, the second full-length album from Louis Baker.

Baker said the album blends soul, R&B, funk and Motown influences with warm analogue textures, expressive guitar, strings and groove-driven rhythms.

“I love to make beats, I love to sample things, I love to sing, play guitar, play bass.”

He said audiences can expect songs from the new record, alongside older favourites such as Black Crow and Rainbow.

Baker said he hoped the show would leave people feeling uplifted.

“Hopefully people feel some uplift and positivity from the set, take that into the week, take that into the month and feel the vibes.”

The show will mark Baker’s return to the Bay of Plenty after several years away, and he said he was looking forward to catching up with friends in the area.

He has spent more than a decade building a career in Aotearoa’s contemporary soul scene, releasing his debut album Open in 2019 and touring extensively throughout New Zealand, Australia, the UK and Europe.

He has also performed at international festivals including Splendour in the Grass, Sziget Festival and Sonar, and supported artists including Gladys Knight, Jordan Rakei and Fat Freddy’s Drop.

More recently, Baker joined Fat Freddy’s Drop as an opening act on their 35-date Slo Mo tour across the UK, Europe and Australia.

Tickets are available through Louis Baker’s website.

Zoe Blake is a multimedia journalist at the Bay of Plenty Times and Rotorua Daily Post.