Fans in Washington D.C. braved the cold on an unusually frigid December evening, lining the streets hours before doors opened at the Lincoln Theatre, hoping to score a coveted front row seat for a concert experience devotees describe as spiritual.

Ticket holders were in awe as Damien Rice, a man of short stature yet undeniable presence, nonchalantly strolled on stage. Without so much as a greeting, he began to sing.

Rice’s soft — yet compellingly strong — voice quickly drew the audience in as if each song was a profound secret never to reach beyond the walls of the concert hall. Rice’s backup singer Lisa Hannigan (you may remember her from Snow Patrol’s Winter ’06 tour), although overshadowed on records, was undeniably the breakout star of the evening. Hannigan’s voice is resoundingly beautiful and unique, filled with intense emotion and subtle power. If Rice is telling a secret, Hannigan is spreading all the rumors.

Rice continued to play for over two hours, enchanting his audience with his dynamic vocal range and intensity. At times, Rice appeared helpless and forlorn, only to scream resilliant, resounding explitives to every girl who has ever broken his heart minutes later.

Rice’s tracks possess all the beauty of love songs along with the depressing, inevitable heartbreak. The concert ended with the melancholy chords of “Cheers Darlin’.” As Rice cried, “you give me three cigarettes to smoke my tears,” every girl in attendance replied: “I can make you feel better after the show.” Concerts, see page 10