Voices From Another Room: January 10th

Released November 3rd, 2006 on Heffa Records.

I bought my first Damien Rice record the same day that I had my medical examination to go on my mission. It was a really snowy day in Logan, Utah, and I had to walk most of the way to the appointment. After that I had some extra money and decided to hit the record store and buy that one guy who sang the song from the movie Closer. I picked it up and put it in, wait for it, my CD player. I was automatically taken away by the pained vocals, lyrics that spoke to me from a literary standpoint, and finally the simplistic nature of the music. My love for Damien has run a lot longer than the love I had to go on a mission.

Throughout my college years I made friends who loved Damien as much as I do and we eventually had the chance to meet the diminutive singer when he came through Utah right after 9 came out. He was shy when it came to the normal fan stuff, like pictures and photographs, but other things like giving me and my friend’s hugs and honestly and candidly answering our questions he did without a second thought. He was genuinely nice and respectful of us, the fans, and that really meant more to us than his wonderful performance.

It is weird that I never have gotten through this album end to end, it might have something to do with the almost twenty minutes of singing bowls and chanting at the end, but really this album came into my life when I was mid semester and I never really had the chance to absorb it like O. Nonetheless this is a beautiful, literary album that creates and exudes energy even in the slower and less intense tracks. My personal favorite track "Coconut Skins" just has an almost punk rock honesty to the lyrics and a bouncy, jovial feel that plays in contrast the sad and almost hopeless lyrical content. That is what Damien Rice excels at: juxtaposing two different things and making both seem so much better because they are together. The following track "Me, My Yoke, And I" presents a similar situation, the lyrics are obscure but vaguely about his life with religion and the music is just so straight forward, quietly strummed chords rising into pounding bass and drums; once again we see the beauty of Damien, he puts something lyrically obscure with music that is very straightforward. It is only after you know that the lyrics talk about Damien's religious upbringing and his coming age, i.e. his discovery of masturbation.

All in all this is not as good or as cohesive as O, but is still miles ahead of many singer songwriters out there in the world. It seems that in recent days that Damien has started to create a community around himself and his music with a differing cast of characters. Working with Irish songwriter Glen Hansard on The Swell Season or singing with David Gray and 50 Cent at Live Earth, and most recently announcing that he is going to work with Phillip Glass and Thom Yorke on a soundtrack for a document about Tibet. However, through all these contributions and side projects a new album as eluded us.

Even if there were no new solo material, both 9 and 0 would stand as a pinnacle that not many artists tend to break at any time in their careers, and very few do it with the humility that Damien Rice has. So here's to a new album, but even if there is none we will always have these two nearly perfect albums.