At his most agreeable, Irish singer-songwriter Damien Rice sounds something like his Anglo-Welsh counterpart, David Gray. The first few songs on "O," Rice's self-produced American debut, are low-key, ...

It’s about 3 a.m., and a motionless Damien Rice is lying on the floor of a small Seventh Avenue hotel suite. His arms resting on his chest and his eyes half-open, the singer is pinned to the floor by ...