Damien Rice
>> 9
>> Hefa / 14th Floor
Can you remember what you were doing on the day Damien Rice’s album ‘O’ was released? No? Well you wouldn’t be alone; such was the slow-burning success of the aforementioned cd. With a word-of-mouth, wildfire style of popularity there seemed one minute to be no need for introspective singer songwriters then, like a tidal wave of corduroy, there couldn’t possible be enough of them. And at the forefront was O’s feckless charm and irresistible hooks.
One of the original and best of the modern genre, Damien Rice hasn’t faltered in his view of restrained and melodic folk nor has he gone down the pop-tinted route of Messers Blunt and Nutini (an easy way to go if you’ve got the right haircut and colloquial drawl). Indeed, it seems that the committed miserable-ist has gone into an even darker place on this set of songs. Three startling tracks in and there looks like little respite from the melancholic mood. ‘Rootless Tree’ is the first and only track to hint at being a possible chart botherer – then a hearty chorus of ‘Fuck you and all you’ve been through’ leaves no room for mistake in Rice’s intentions.
Once again, with minimal pomp or bluster, Damien Rice has released an album that features some of the land’s finest acoustic folk. You’d be forgiven for not knowing it was out, but it’s refreshing to know that there are people out there for whom music is all you need – the bitter icing of an ‘irony charged’ E4 interview has no place here.
Another wonder of ‘9’ is that it opens with Lisa Hannigan’s haunting vocals. A sign of Rice’s maturing ego perhaps? A response to the last few year’s ‘It’s my ball and you can’t play’ attitude at gigs? Who knows, but it works brilliantly.
If you need to be convinced listen to ‘9 Crimes’, ‘Rootless Tree’ and ‘Me, My Yoke and I’. If you room in your heart for songs that make the dark nights seem darker then step out and pick up ‘O’ – it’s an amazingly good set of songs for a night in alone with some red wine.
>> Russell Moore
www.damienrice.com
