9
by Damien Rice
Metascore
64

Generally favorable reviews - based on 28 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 15 out of 28
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 28
  3. Negative: 2 out of 28
  1. musicOMH.com
    100
    Overall, Rice has produced a release which equals and perhaps even surpasses his debut, a album that takes you through emotional highs and lows you are unlikely to hear anywhere else this winter.
  2. Blender
    80
    Even when he tips the sensitivity scales too much... Rice’s innate, anti-lite-FM intensity saves him.
  3. Observer Music Monthly
    80
    Quite addictive.
  5. AllMusic
    70
    9 is by no means a failure, or even bad, but it dulls in comparison to what Rice can really produce, which makes it disappointing overall.
  6. Slant Magazine
    70
    There are still enough swelling, string-laden climaxes, crisscrossing vocal lines, and cascading symphonies of voices to keep fans of O happy, but the album is significantly less unified.
  7. Entertainment Weekly
    75
    Rice stands apart from the pack because of the genuine beauty and eccentricity of his tunes.
  8. Lost At Sea
    80
    An album to which listening compares to watching The Break-up or The Last Kiss.
  9. Los Angeles Times
    88
    There are not as many revelations as on Rice's acclaimed 2002 debut, "O," but it still can be sonically thrilling.
  10. The A.V. Club
    75
    He rocks more often and more bombastically, but he still writes few song-songs of the kind that anyone with a guitar could stand on stage and interpret. This music needs Rice's rangy voice and desperate theatricality to work.
  11. Under The Radar
    70
    While O floated along pretty much at one consistently delicate pace, 9 finds Rice exploring a wider range of musical expression. [#16, p.97]
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  12. Mojo
    80
    Rice doesn't dismiss outright the folky troubadour charm that distinguished O, but here it's a springboard for jealousy, sex, misery. [Dec 2006, p.104]
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  13. Uncut
    80
    A delicate and sometimes bleak record. [Dec 2006, p.123]
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  14. Q Magazine
    80
    9 may be quiet, but it is never easy listening. [Dec 2006, p.125]
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  15. Spin
    80
    Rice seeks 24/7 momentousness here. [Jan 2007, p.92]
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  16. The Boston Phoenix
    75
    He avoids being too folksy or slipping into an acoustic coma by layering percussion, electric guitars, and strings when needed. By the end, you’ll feel you’ve been through the same wringer.

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
8.4

Universal acclaim- based on 53 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 46 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 53
  3. Negative: 3 out of 53
  1. Ricko
    Sep 2, 2014
    8
    Not as impressive as his debut but still a generally strong record. The haunting "9 Crimes" is a fantastic opener but after that theNot as impressive as his debut but still a generally strong record. The haunting "9 Crimes" is a fantastic opener but after that the highlights are sandwiched between some material that coasts along. I've always thought there was plenty of very strong Damien Rice material knocking about that should have been included on the album ahead of what ended up on 9. Lisa Hannigan, whose vocals lifted "O" to another level is absent for most of the record and this takes away from "9". Despite these flaws there are some great moments here, such is the strength of Rice's songwriting, the only pity is that we know it could have been so much more.… Full Review »
  2. CarlyH.
    Jan 11, 2009
    10
    Pitchfork, i read your review, it was RETARDED. You have no REAL reasons behind hating this album. I hate you, pitchfork.
  3. AdamP.
    Jan 1, 2009
    10
    I heard of good music but this is a diffrent level. It arouses more feeling than poetry but tells the story better. Says it as it Is. I heard of good music but this is a diffrent level. It arouses more feeling than poetry but tells the story better. Says it as it Is. Elephants was sensional… Full Review »
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