Damien Rice
Ironic that a record which stole two years to complete prior to its eventual emergence, took almost the same amount of following time to get finally recognised amid a global plain.
But that’s ‘O’. That’s Damien Rice. And, now, he’s laughing.
Not a mediocre, drippy singer/songwriter in the classic sense of the term, his subject-matter approaches the bracing, intense and controversial, yet remains still tinged with an immediate melodious-lilt worthy of the kings of the alt-genre. Going gold soon after its release in his native Ireland, the rest of the world took a longer time to get convinced of ‘O’.
Fast-forward a year to mid-2003 – and sell-out shows, via word-of-mouth praise and sassy press, plus a memorable appearance at Glastonbury, have helped Rice become a star. The picture is the same Stateside, where his work on ‘O’ led to his winning the prestigious Shortlist Prize, as voted for by a panel of uber-celebs and big-wheeler hot-shots. Sleazy.
Let’s just pray a follow-up doesn’t form as much an arduous task for Rice as his intimate, graceful debut.
OFFICIAL SITE: Home-domain of the potty-mouthed Irish songster; features a truck-load of live-info, photography, links and an online-store.
DAMIENRICE.CO.UK: Knowingly plush and romantically praising, this is independently run and is all the more enthuse-worthy for it.