Rice, Damien (1973– )

Irish guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He achieved a grassroots following for his intimate and direct alternative folk-inspired pop music. He followed his debut hit single ‘The Blower's Daughter’ (2001), with the album O (2002), which achieved wide critical and commercial success.

He tours frequently with his full band, which includes Lisa Hannigan (backing vocals), Vyvienne Long (cello), Tomo (drums), and Shane Fitzsimons (bass). He gained wide exposure in the UK after performing at the Glastonbury music festival in 2003 and 2004. His single ‘Cannonball’ became a moderate hit in the USA in 2003, and he won the USA's Shortlist Music Prize for O the same year.

He was born outside of Dublin and grew up in Celbridge, County Kildare. He was part of the indie band Juniper, which signed with Polygram in 1997 and released the singles ‘Weatherman’ and ‘The World is Dead’, which fared respectably on Irish radio. Contractual obligations prevented the band from recording an album, so Rice left, and the band subsequently became Bell X1. After travelling around Europe as a busker 1999–2000, Rice returned to Dublin and recorded a demo, which he sent to music producer and composer David Arnold (1962– ). ‘The Blower's Daughter’ became a top 20 hit upon release and was featured, along with Rice's single ‘Cold Water’, in the Mike Nichols film Closer (2004). Rice released his B-Sides EP in 2004.