Absolutely Amazing
The first song I ever heard by Damien Rice was Volcano and I fell in love. Volcano is an amazingly haunting song and sticks with you. Shortly afterwards I located his MySpace page and listened to songs from there which included songs from both 0 and 9 and fell even more in love.

I must say, Damien Rice has an amazing voice and beautiful lyrics. I would suggest this CD to everyone espcially if you're looking for music to just play in the background while working. The music is soft and even and isn't too distracting, but, as contradicting as this may sound, it's very memorable. There's no way I'll ever regret buying this CD.

Damien Rice is an Innovative Troubadour
I just love this album. Damien Rice brings storytelling back to the alternative music scene. His warm and sultry voice is reminiscent of Indian singer Tanita Tikarum, only with a slightly more positive bent to the lyrics. The songs have a degree of continuity which makes whole album listening a pleasure. It is filled with unexpected and delightful interjections from female vocalists. The ample use of strings makes O both easy listening and the triumph of a contempory balladeir.

So-so
This is a fairly uneven CD--some songs are very nice, but others make you want to reach for the "skip" button.

Classic
Blowers daughter, Amie, Older Chests, this album is packed with slow emotion that will never get old.

on my mind
This stunning Damien Rice offering is by turns imperfect, soulish, quirky, self-absorbed, and fantastic.

Rice's persuasive voice is complemented with uncommon tact by gorgeous female accompaniment. Though it never ceases to be a Damien Rice album, Lisa Hannigan and her friends are so good that they play a solid supporting role without which Rice would not be what he is. Almost the same can be said of the understated by skillful acoustic guitar that encircles Rice's voice throughout `O''s tenspot of tracks.

One cannot escape the notion that there was some enjoying of wine as this album was perceived and executed and that it is best enjoyed beside a bottle of something red. The image, at the least, gets at the tone and substance of his artistry and the soft-ish reflection that his songs embody.

Among the album's many fine tracks, one deserves special mention: `Can't Take My Eyes Off of You' is an exquisite restatement of an old tune, masterfully accomplished in the way that remakes too often are not.

This album came to this reviewer from his son as a Christmas gift. I was unfamiliar with Damien Rice. On the strengths of this album, that will change.