9

Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice has always had a certain scruffy, raw fervor that sets him apart from the myriad soulful folk singers armed with acoustic guitars, and that's never been more evident than in his follow-up to 2002's O.

9
Provided By:The Daily Vault

9
Damien Rice
Heffa, 2006
REVIEW BY: Melanie Love
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 07/03/2008
Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice has always had a certain scruffy, raw fervor that sets him apart from the myriad soulful folk singers armed with acoustic guitars, and that’s never been more evident than in his follow-up to 2002’s O. Where his debut was a soft, sonically lovely and lyrically lush affair, 9, released in 2006, has a sort of burning desperation to it, thanks to Rice’s rangy vocals, the lyrical bloodlust, and his assistance from singer Lisa Hannigan (though unfortunately much less on this album), whose hushed voice provides a haunting weight to the unbridled passion of the material covered here.
9 launches out with “9 Crimes,” which is light-years apart from O’s standout cut, the light, sweeping “The Blower’s Daughter:” combining quiet trickles of piano and crescendoing strings with dueling vocals from Hannigan and Rice, this track is achingly gorgeous, and it’s a perfect set-up for the album’s vacillation between lovelorn reminiscences and raging jealousy.
“The Animals Were Gone” continues in the vein of almost painful intimacy with lines like “I love your depression and your double chin / I love almost everything you bring to this offering" and its refrain, “Waking up without you is like drinking from an empty cup.” It’s an unconventional love song, but the gauzy, string-laden backdrop gives the track a sense of dreaminess, and as always, Rice’s soaring, scraping vocals have a way of getting in under your skin and staying there.
But for me, the most indelible cut off of this disc is “Rootless Tree,” a blistering, surprisingly accessible lambast of an ex-girlfriend with the unforgettable chorus, “Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you and all we’ve been through / I said leave it, leave it, leave it / It’s nothing to you,” all set to raw, electric instrumentation.

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