Checkmate Savage is the debut studio album by Scottish

Scottish people

The Scottish people , or Scots, are a nation and ethnic group native to Scotland. Historically they emerged from an amalgamation of the Picts and Gaels, incorporating neighbouring Britons to the south as well as invading Germanic peoples such as the Anglo-Saxons and the Norse.In modern use,...

 indie rock band The Phantom Band

The Phantom Band

The Phantom Band is a Glasgow-based band consisting of Duncan Marquiss , Gerry Hart , Andy Wake , Rick Anthony , Iain Stewart and Greg Sinclair . They are often generally described as indie-rock but are known to utilize a variety of genres and styles...

, released January 26, 2009 through Chemikal Underground Records to critical acclaim.

The album was produced by Paul Savage

Paul Savage

Paul Savage is a Scottish musician and record producer, best known for being the drummer in the Scottish indie rock group The Delgados.-Early life:...

, formerly of The Delgados

The Delgados

The Delgados were a Scottish indie rock band from Motherwell, North Lanarkshire. The band was composed of Alun Woodward , Stewart Henderson , Paul Savage and Emma Pollock .-Biography:...

.

Title

According to the band, the album's title refers to: "over-population, dwindling natural resources and the yawning void within every one of us caused by society's unnatural social contracts, and mass sexual repression, means one thing: it's checkmate for the human animal."

Accolades

In December 2009, Checkmate Savage entered The Skinny's "Scottish Albums of the Decade" list at #28.

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
The Skinny	Scotland	Scottish Albums of the Decade	2009	28

The album placed at number 17 in MOJO magazine's top 50 albums of 2009.

In January 2010 the album was given the inaugural "Soundcheck Award" for album of 2009 by Radioeins and Der Tagesspiegel

Der Tagesspiegel

Der Tagesspiegel is a classical liberal German daily newspaper...

 in Berlin.

Track listing

1. "The Howling" - 6:35
2. "Burial Sounds" - 4:47
3. "Folk Song Oblivion - 4:14
4. "Crocodile" - 7:42
5. "Halfhound" - 4:11
6. "Left Hand Wave" - 5:40
7. "Island" - 8:51
8. "Throwing Bones" - 5:01
9. "The Whole is on My Side" - 7:53

Personnel

• Duncan Marquiss - guitar, vocals, percussion, fx, artwork
• Gerry Hart - bass, vocals, percussion, fx, artwork
• Andy Wake - synthesizers, vocals, samples, percussion, fx, artwork
• Rick Anthony - guitar, vocals, percussion, fx, artwork
• Damien Tonner - drums, percussion, fx, artwork
• Greg Sinclair - guitar, pedals/fx, percussion, artwork
• Paul Savage
  Paul Savage
  Paul Savage is a Scottish musician and record producer, best known for being the drummer in the Scottish indie rock group The Delgados.-Early life:...
  
   - producer
• Jamie Savage - engineer
• Kenny MacLeod - mastering
• Christopher O'Donnell - flexitone ("Throwing Bones")
• Aztext - design