W&H have recently been feverishly been endorsing a slew of disparate artsists who've proved it really IS possible to take the DIY option within the industry and create a credible niche.
Dublin-born (and loosely based) singer/ songwriter Damien Rice, however, seems intent on taking the cottage industry approach to a destination far exceeding most people's expectations. OK, he has a few influential friends out there (like producer David Arnold who stumped up for Damien's mobile studio), but mostly Rice has proved that a self-sufficient musician can achieve commercial success the (supposedly) hard way with his 2002 debut album "o" reaching platinum status in Ireland.
Jugding by this new EP, this isn't surprising, either for while Rice's acoustic troubadour stance is hardly revolutionary, his hard-bitten songs burrow their way into your psyche after a few plays, often leaving a bitter(sweet) aftertaste for you to deal with.
The deceptively gentle "Delicate" from "o" is revisited here, but it's the closest thing we get to a relative oasis of calm amid the rest of the turbulence. Lead track "Woman Like A Man" takes off at a malevolent, trip-hop influenced shuffle, with the black-hearted cello swooping in half way through and Rice and Lisa Hannigan duetting their way through damning stuff like "You wanna get burned, you wanna get turned, you wanna get fucked inside out." Whoa! They expect airplay with this?
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"Lonelily" and a live acoustic solo take of "The Professor" complete the picture. "Lonelily" is breathy and infinitely melodic, but no less disturbing for that, while "The Professor" is a stark, anatomical curse of a thing that ably demonstrates just how far removed Rice is from the usual folk-pop strummers regardless of his chosen medium.
An intense and unrelenting experience, "Woman Like A Man" sports its' emotional cuts and bruises with pride and serves further notice that Damien Rice is in this for the long haul.
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