Cruachan (band)
Encyclopedia
Cruachan [kroo-a-khawn] is a Celtic metal
band from Dublin, Ireland
that has been active since the 1990s. They have been acclaimed as having "gone the greatest lengths of anyone in their attempts to expand" the genre of folk metal
. They are recognised as one of the founders of the genre of folk metal. With a specific focus on Celtic music and the use of Celtic mythology in their lyrics, Cruachan's style of folk metal is known as Celtic metal
. The band named themselves after the archaeological site of Rathcroghan in Ireland also known as Cruachan.
-inspired black metal band by the name of Minas Tirith
in 1991. Around the same time, he began listening to more folk music and picked up Skyclad
's debut album The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth
. Originally released in 1990, this "ambitious" and "groundbreaking" album made an impact on Fay and he set out to combine black metal
with the folk music of Ireland
. In 1992, Keith Fay formed Cruachan with a demo recording
distributed in 1993. Keith Fay also credits the Irish rock band Horslips
as a "huge influence on Cruachan," further noting that "what they were doing in the 70's is the equivalent of what we do now."
The year 1995 saw the release of Cruachan's debut album Tuatha Na Gael
, an album that "suffered under poor production." On the strength of this album, the band received attention from Century Media Records
. The band found it amazing to receive interest from "such a big label" but were dismayed at the terms and conditions of the offered recording deal. They refused to sign a "very poor contract" that would have given the record label "the rights to change every aspect of our music." After "lengthy negotiations failed to yield a deal with Century Media Records", the band disbanded in 1997.
Cruachan reformed in January 1999 and after signing a recording deal with Hammerheart Records
, they released a second album The Middle Kingdom
in 2000. By this time, the band had dropped the black metal style in favor of a more traditional metal sound. They also expanded the roster by inviting guest vocalist Karen Gilligan to be a full-fledged member of the group. Their subsequent album Folk-Lore
was co-produced by Shane McGowan of The Pogues
fame. Shane McGowan also contributed vocals to two covers of traditional Irish songs, "Spancill Hill
" and "Ride On." The latter was released as a single and the band experienced a small taste of commercial success when it entered the Irish charts.
The band released their fourth studio album Pagan
in 2004 with cover artwork by John Howe. The production on the album was subsequently criticized by frontman Keith Fay as "terrible". In 2005, the band parted ways with their label Karmageddon Media
"on good terms." For the band's fifth album, Cruachan returned to the same Sun Studios where they had recorded their first three albums. The result was The Morrigan's Call
, an effort that Keith Fay described as their "best work to date, in every aspect." The album was released in November 2006 through AFM Records
. Drummer Joe Farrell left the band shortly thereafter due to "personal reasons" and was replaced by Colin Purcell.
A further line-up change occurred in December 2008 as vocalist Karen Gilligan left the band "on good terms for various reasons." Keith Fay announced that he "will take over full-time vocal duties while John Ryan and John O' Fathaigh will take on backing vocal roles."
A demo was recorded in 2010 which showed Cruachan's return to a much harder more Black Metal influenced style. This demo was sent to specific record labels only and Candlelight Records UK signed Cruachan in June 2010. The latest Cruachan album is expected to be ready in late 2010 and slated for an early 2011 release.
On the morning of February 20, 2011, Keith Fay was brutally assaulted by about 15 men after leaving a nightclub in Dublin. Fay survived the attack with a broken rib, a knife-wound, and extensive bruising.
Celtic metal
Celtic metal is a subgenre of folk metal that developed in the 1990s in Ireland. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal music and Celtic music. The early pioneers of the genre were the three Irish bands Cruachan, Primordial and Waylander...
band from Dublin, Ireland
Republic of Ireland
Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
that has been active since the 1990s. They have been acclaimed as having "gone the greatest lengths of anyone in their attempts to expand" the genre of folk metal
Folk metal
Folk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music...
. They are recognised as one of the founders of the genre of folk metal. With a specific focus on Celtic music and the use of Celtic mythology in their lyrics, Cruachan's style of folk metal is known as Celtic metal
Celtic metal
Celtic metal is a subgenre of folk metal that developed in the 1990s in Ireland. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal music and Celtic music. The early pioneers of the genre were the three Irish bands Cruachan, Primordial and Waylander...
. The band named themselves after the archaeological site of Rathcroghan in Ireland also known as Cruachan.
Biography
Keith Fay had formed a TolkienJ. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, CBE was an English writer, poet, philologist, and university professor, best known as the author of the classic high fantasy works The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and The Silmarillion.Tolkien was Rawlinson and Bosworth Professor of Anglo-Saxon at Pembroke College,...
-inspired black metal band by the name of Minas Tirith
Minas Tirith
Minas Tirith , originally named Minas Anor, is a fictional city and castle in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth writings. It became the heavily fortified capital of Gondor in the second half of the Third Age...
in 1991. Around the same time, he began listening to more folk music and picked up Skyclad
Skyclad (band)
Skyclad are a British heavy metal band with heavy folk influences in their music. They are considered one of the pioneers of folk metal. The etymology behind the term "skyclad" comes from a pagan/wiccan term for ritual nudity, in which rituals are performed with the participants metaphorically clad...
's debut album The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth
The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth
The Wayward Sons of Mother Earth is the first album by British folk metal group Skyclad, and is thus probably the first ever folk metal album, with the track "The Widdershins Jig" in particular pointing the way for the genre....
. Originally released in 1990, this "ambitious" and "groundbreaking" album made an impact on Fay and he set out to combine black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
with the folk music of Ireland
Folk music of Ireland
The folk music of Ireland is the generic term for music that has been created in various genres in Ireland.-History:...
. In 1992, Keith Fay formed Cruachan with a demo recording
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
distributed in 1993. Keith Fay also credits the Irish rock band Horslips
Horslips
Horslips are an Irish Celtic rock band that compose, arrange and perform songs based on traditional Irish jigs and reels. The group are regarded as 'founding fathers of Celtic rock' for their fusion of traditional Irish music with rock music and went on to inspire many local and international acts....
as a "huge influence on Cruachan," further noting that "what they were doing in the 70's is the equivalent of what we do now."
The year 1995 saw the release of Cruachan's debut album Tuatha Na Gael
Tuatha Na Gael
Tuatha Na Gael is an album released in 1995 by Celtic metal band Cruachan.-Track listing:#"I Am Tuan" – 2:23#"The First Battle of Moytura" – 7:46#"Maeves March" – 3:32#"The Fall of Gondolin" – 8:04#"Cúchulainn" – 7:05...
, an album that "suffered under poor production." On the strength of this album, the band received attention from Century Media Records
Century Media Records
Century Media Records is an Independent record label with offices in the United States, Germany, Australia, France, Italy, Sweden, Finland, and the United Kingdom.- Background :...
. The band found it amazing to receive interest from "such a big label" but were dismayed at the terms and conditions of the offered recording deal. They refused to sign a "very poor contract" that would have given the record label "the rights to change every aspect of our music." After "lengthy negotiations failed to yield a deal with Century Media Records", the band disbanded in 1997.
Cruachan reformed in January 1999 and after signing a recording deal with Hammerheart Records
Karmageddon Media
Karmageddon Media was a Dutch independent record label specializing in death metal, black metal, doom metal and folk metal bands from around the world...
, they released a second album The Middle Kingdom
The Middle Kingdom (album)
The Middle Kingdom is an album released in 2000 by Celtic metal band Cruachan.-Track listing:#"A Celtic Mourning" – 4:05#"Celtica " – 5:40#"The Fianna" – 4:53#"A Druid's Passing" – 3:25#"Is Fuair an Chroi" – 4:53...
in 2000. By this time, the band had dropped the black metal style in favor of a more traditional metal sound. They also expanded the roster by inviting guest vocalist Karen Gilligan to be a full-fledged member of the group. Their subsequent album Folk-Lore
Folk-Lore
Folk-Lore was released in 2002 by Celtic metal band Cruachan.-Track listing:#"Bloody Sunday" – 4:15#"The Victory Reel" – 1:21#"Death of a Gael" – 5:38#"The Rocky Road to Dublin" – 3:07#"Ossian's Return" – 4:44...
was co-produced by Shane McGowan of The Pogues
The Pogues
The Pogues are a Celtic punk band, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems but the band continued first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals before...
fame. Shane McGowan also contributed vocals to two covers of traditional Irish songs, "Spancill Hill
Spancill Hill
"Spancil Hill" is a song written in a traditional Irish folk style by Michael Considine. It bemoans the plight of the Irish immigrants who so longed for home from their new lives in America, many of whom went to California with the Gold Rush. This song is sung by a man who longs for his home in...
" and "Ride On." The latter was released as a single and the band experienced a small taste of commercial success when it entered the Irish charts.
The band released their fourth studio album Pagan
Pagan (album)
Pagan is an album by Celtic metal band Cruachan released in 2004.-Track listing:#"Michael Collins" - 3:51#"Pagan" - 5:07#"The Gael" - 4:02#"Ard Rí Na Heireann" - 5:03#"The March to Cluain Tairbh" - 1:59#"Viking Slayer" - 4:15#"1014 AD" - 3:36...
in 2004 with cover artwork by John Howe. The production on the album was subsequently criticized by frontman Keith Fay as "terrible". In 2005, the band parted ways with their label Karmageddon Media
Karmageddon Media
Karmageddon Media was a Dutch independent record label specializing in death metal, black metal, doom metal and folk metal bands from around the world...
"on good terms." For the band's fifth album, Cruachan returned to the same Sun Studios where they had recorded their first three albums. The result was The Morrigan's Call
The Morrigan's Call
The Morrigan's Call is an album by Celtic metal band Cruachan released in 2006.-Track listing:#"Shelob" - 3:03#"The Brown Bull of Cooley" - 5:23#"Coffin Ships" - 1:48#"The Great Hunger" - 6:06#"The Old Woman in the Woods" - 1:50#"Ungoliant" - 3:55...
, an effort that Keith Fay described as their "best work to date, in every aspect." The album was released in November 2006 through AFM Records
AFM Records
AFM-Records GmbH is a music label based in Schwalmstadt, Germany. They focus on the heavy metal musical genre, signing bands such as U.D.O., Doro, Kotipelto, Masterplan, Nostradameus, and Annihilator....
. Drummer Joe Farrell left the band shortly thereafter due to "personal reasons" and was replaced by Colin Purcell.
A further line-up change occurred in December 2008 as vocalist Karen Gilligan left the band "on good terms for various reasons." Keith Fay announced that he "will take over full-time vocal duties while John Ryan and John O' Fathaigh will take on backing vocal roles."
A demo was recorded in 2010 which showed Cruachan's return to a much harder more Black Metal influenced style. This demo was sent to specific record labels only and Candlelight Records UK signed Cruachan in June 2010. The latest Cruachan album is expected to be ready in late 2010 and slated for an early 2011 release.
On the morning of February 20, 2011, Keith Fay was brutally assaulted by about 15 men after leaving a nightclub in Dublin. Fay survived the attack with a broken rib, a knife-wound, and extensive bruising.
Studio albums
- Tuatha Na GaelTuatha Na GaelTuatha Na Gael is an album released in 1995 by Celtic metal band Cruachan.-Track listing:#"I Am Tuan" – 2:23#"The First Battle of Moytura" – 7:46#"Maeves March" – 3:32#"The Fall of Gondolin" – 8:04#"Cúchulainn" – 7:05...
(1995) - The Middle KingdomThe Middle Kingdom (album)The Middle Kingdom is an album released in 2000 by Celtic metal band Cruachan.-Track listing:#"A Celtic Mourning" – 4:05#"Celtica " – 5:40#"The Fianna" – 4:53#"A Druid's Passing" – 3:25#"Is Fuair an Chroi" – 4:53...
(2000) - Folk-LoreFolk-LoreFolk-Lore was released in 2002 by Celtic metal band Cruachan.-Track listing:#"Bloody Sunday" – 4:15#"The Victory Reel" – 1:21#"Death of a Gael" – 5:38#"The Rocky Road to Dublin" – 3:07#"Ossian's Return" – 4:44...
(2002) - PaganPagan (album)Pagan is an album by Celtic metal band Cruachan released in 2004.-Track listing:#"Michael Collins" - 3:51#"Pagan" - 5:07#"The Gael" - 4:02#"Ard Rí Na Heireann" - 5:03#"The March to Cluain Tairbh" - 1:59#"Viking Slayer" - 4:15#"1014 AD" - 3:36...
(2004) - The Morrigan's CallThe Morrigan's CallThe Morrigan's Call is an album by Celtic metal band Cruachan released in 2006.-Track listing:#"Shelob" - 3:03#"The Brown Bull of Cooley" - 5:23#"Coffin Ships" - 1:48#"The Great Hunger" - 6:06#"The Old Woman in the Woods" - 1:50#"Ungoliant" - 3:55...
(2006) - Blood on the Black Robe (2011)
Demos
- Celtica (Demo, 1994)
- Promo '97 (Demo, 1997, also included with 2001 bootleg of Tuatha Na Gael)
- Untitled (Demo, 2010, led to new record deal with Candlelight records)
Compilations
- A Celtic Trilogy (2002 boxed set of Tuatha Na Gael, The Middle Kingdom and Folk-Lore in picture LPLP albumThe LP, or long-playing microgroove record, is a format for phonograph records, an analog sound storage medium. Introduced by Columbia Records in 1948, it was soon adopted as a new standard by the entire record industry...
format, limited to 500 copies) - A Celtic Legacy (2007)
Current members
- Keith Fay – guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, vocals, bodhránBodhránThe bodhrán is an Irish frame drum ranging from 25 to 65 cm in diameter, with most drums measuring 35 to 45 cm . The sides of the drum are 9 to 20 cm deep. A goatskin head is tacked to one side...
, mandolinMandolinA mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, percussion - John Clohessy – bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Colin Purcell – drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussion - John Ryan Will – tin whistleTin whistleThe tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, English Flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, Tin Flageolet, Irish whistle and Clarke London Flageolet is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is an end blown fipple flute, putting it in the same category as the recorder, American Indian flute, and...
, violinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
, banjoBanjoIn the 1830s Sweeney became the first white man to play the banjo on stage. His version of the instrument replaced the gourd with a drum-like sound box and included four full-length strings alongside a short fifth-string. There is no proof, however, that Sweeney invented either innovation. This new...
, bouzoukiBouzoukiThe bouzouki , is a musical instrument with Greek origin in the lute family. A mainstay of modern Greek music, the front of the body is flat and is usually heavily inlaid with mother-of-pearl. The instrument is played with a plectrum and has a sharp metallic sound, reminiscent of a mandolin but...
, keyboards - John O' Fathaigh - tin whistleTin whistleThe tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, English Flageolet, Scottish penny whistle, Tin Flageolet, Irish whistle and Clarke London Flageolet is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is an end blown fipple flute, putting it in the same category as the recorder, American Indian flute, and...
Past members
- Karen Gilligan - vocals, percussion(1999–2008)
- Joe Farrell
- Jay Brennan
- Collette Uí Fathaigh
- Leon Bias
- Aisling Hanrahan
- Joanne Hennessy
- Steven Anderson
- Darryl Conlan
- Jay O' Neill
- Steven Coleman
- Declan Cassidy
- Paul Kearns
- Edward Gilbert