Damien Rice

September 15, 2007; AT&T stage

Although I adore Damien Rice's laid back style of music, I wouldn't say that I'm a big fan. Well, prior to ACL I wouldn't have...

I was torn between seeing Arctic Monkeys and Damien Rice so I settled on seeing Rice the first half hour, then jetting over to Arctic Monkeys. Immediately after Rice's set started, I knew my plan was out the window. There was no way I could tear myself away from his soothing Irish voice and David Beckham-esque looks.

Okay, okay, in all honesty, he was excellent because of his diversity. At times, the usually mellow Rice morphed into an angrier version and I can't say I hated it. The edgy lyrics ("F*ck you and all we've been through") were vastly different from the Rice of old, but the raw emotion in his voice definitely made me reminisce on times I wanted to say the same thing to an ex.

For the crowd favorites (like "The Blower's Daughter"), his calming voice rang out so clearly above the masses and his smooth acoustic guitar paired with a cello clearly put everyone in the romantic mood. I soon realized I was very alone in a crowd of twenty-somethings sloppily making out with each other. Awkward.

True musicians like Rice are what ACL is all about and what keeps the crowd coming back year after year. I know I'll be there next year.