Damien Rice

Sunday afternoon saw Damien Rice take to the stage alone, giving little clue as to the effect he would soon be having on the small, but growing, crowd. After a solo acoustic song he brought forth the rest of the band, including a cellist and his singer (to call her a backing singer is unfair), Lisa Hannigan.

Between them, they then crafted out tale after tale of love, hope, hatred and above all, beauty. Rice's voice soared one minute and then crackled with angst the next as he sang through a distorted microphone, conjuring images of an Irish Jeff Buckley which were made even more real when he covered the timeless 'Hallelujah'. The guitar playing moved swiftly from acoustic to full-on angst-ridden, heart-rending despair and back again, accompanied so often by Hannigan's incredibly angelic voice, which served as much an extra instrument as a vocal counterpart to that of the man himself.

An 'unfortunate' turn of events left the next act unable to go on, and Rice got the chance to play an extended set which enraptured all who saw it, leaving men and women alike in tears of emotion.

Nigh on perfect.

review by "Jack Nobbledy"

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