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. Amazon.com
    60
    Not quite as endearing as his raw and seductive 2002 debut.
  2. Billboard
    60
    It is simply miserable, heavy, repetitive and cathartic. [18 Nov 2006]
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  3. NOW Magazine
    60
    It's good enough to impress fans of David Gray and Coldplay.
  5. Rolling Stone
    60
    The tortured melancholy bit -- part of it, anyway -- takes a back seat on the follow-up to this Irish bard's well-loved 2003 debut.
  6. Village Voice
    60
    As it was on 2003's O, Damien Rice's songs are so naked emotionally that even listening is akin to eavesdropping on a bad breakup.
  7. Paste Magazine
    60
    While not as panoramic or varied as its predecessor, 9 is marked by a similar mix of poised control and impulsive gestures backed by dramatically arranged, lyrical instrumentation. [Dec 2006, p.92]
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  8. Dot Music
    50
    "9" picks up where the ubiquitous and two-million selling "O" left off. Hoarse howling to acoustic guitar strumming; folksy plucking to bleeding heart mutterings; Radiohead-a-like moments pull of portentous, look-at-me pauses and full band crescendos.
  9. The Guardian
    40
    He quivers, moans and pleads in obsessive contemplation of the darling departed in a self-dramatising simulation of catharsis that wrings from his performances an ocean of emotion when a drop of understated restraint would prove more telling.
  10. The New York Times
    40
    "9"... has a confused feel: he simultaneously glosses up the production, tries too hard to seem edgy, then compares women to sandy shores and the morning sun like an adult-contemporary sap. [20 Nov 2006]
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  11. New Musical Express (NME)
    40
    He's terribly earnest. [4 Nov 2006, p.35]
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  12. PopMatters
    40
    Not all of 9 is obnoxious, though. Much of it is merely boring; the unmemorable tunes failing to elevate beyond everyday, coffee house, bland competency.

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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