Crógacht is the ninth studio album by the German

melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavine ...

band Suidakra. This album features a greater Celtic sound and theme than earlier works. In particular, it builds on the sound formed in the previous album, '' Caledonia'', notably through the additional introduction of a sixteen-member choir as well as traditional instruments, such as the

tin whistle The tin whistle, also called the penny whistle, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute, putting it in the same class as the recorder, Native American flute, and other woodwind instruments that meet such criteria ...

, banjo, in addition to the

bagpipe Bagpipes are a woodwind instrument using enclosed reeds fed from a constant reservoir of air in the form of a bag. The Great Highland bagpipes are well known, but people have played bagpipes for centuries throughout large parts of Europe, ...

featured in both albums. Contrasting these new influences, ''Crógacht'' maintains the well-grounded melodic death sound that ''SuidAkrA'' began with in earlier albums.

Release history and tour activity

''Crógacht'' was recorded and mixed between 10 November 2008 and 30 November 2008 by Martin Buchwalter at Gernhart Recording Studio in Siegburg, Germany. The album was released on February 20, 2009, in Germany, and on 3 March 2009 in the United States. In early 2009, ''SuidAkrA'' supported its release on a North American tour.

Concept and storyline

''"Crógacht"'', the Irish word for bravery, is based in its entirety on the Irish folktale, Aided Óenfhir Aífe. It tells the story of the hero Cuchulainn’s journey to the

Hebridean The Hebrides (; gd, Innse Gall, ; non, Suðreyjar, "southern isles") are an archipelago off the west coast of the Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner and Outer Hebri ...

island of Skye, where he seeks to learn the arts of war from the Scythian warrior woman

Scáthach Scáthach () or Sgàthach ( gd, Sgàthach an Eilean Sgitheanach) is a figure in the Ulster Cycle of Irish mythology. She is a legendary Scottish warrior woman and martial arts teacher who trains the legendary Ulster hero Cú Chulainn in the a ...

. The decisions he then has to make set the events in motion that will lead up to his son Conlaoch’s tragic fate.

Track listing

# "Slán" – 1:49 # "Conlaoch" – 5:18 # "Isle of Skye" – 6:00 # "Scáthach" – 5:09 # "Feats of War" – 2:47 # "Shattering Swords" – 4:15 # "Ár Nasc Fola" – 3:02 # "Gilded Oars" – 5:36 # "Baile's Strand" – 7:20

Personnel

Suidakra: * Arkadius Antonik –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or withou ...

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...

s, keyboards, banjo * Marcus Riewaldt – bass * Lars Wehner – drums,

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

Session/guest musicians: * Axel Römer - bagpipes, tin whistle * Tina Stabel -

on ''Feats of War'' * Miriam Hensel - additional guest

on ''Shattering Swords'' * Sebastian Hintz - backing vocals Other staff: * Martin Buchwalter – mixing * Kris Verwimp -

lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a " libretto" and their writer, ...

, cover artwork, album concept

References

External links

Various news articles on the album's release

Track by track explanation of the album concept by Kris Verwimp

Album lyrics on suidakra.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Crogacht 2009 albums Suidakra albums