Cluain Tarbh
Encyclopedia
Cluain Tarbh is the Irish Celtic metal
band Mael Mórdha
's debut studio album. It was released in September 2005. The album name, along with the band name, can be written as the cover suggests, using Traditional Irish typography. The name would then be, "Cluain Tarḃ."
The album contains eight tracks, the shortest being An Tús at 0:56 long, and the longest being I Am the Wench's Bane at 10:15 long. The album is a collection of popular and newly-written material spanning a several years in the band's history.
The cover art depicts the Battle of Clontarf
or Cath Chluain Tarbh and this is the primary theme of the album's art and title track. The man on the left is a native Irish Gael, presumably fighting on the side of Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig, High King of Ireland. The man on the right appears to be a Viking
, fighting on the side of the King of Leinster, Mael Mórdha
. Both men are engaged in one-on-one combat against one another.
The album contains lyrics in both English
and Irish
.
, used as a metaphor
for the entire album.
's signature Ceol Breatha Gaelach on the album. This is one of the sample tracks which can be heard on their website. As explained by the band:
A complex mix of orchestration
, layered guitars and drums
, this tune expresses the misery felt by the ignorance
expressed towards our past
and the hope of a time when a king will rise to unite the clanns and revive our dying culture. The music is more textured than Cluain Tarbh as the theme deals with more subtle, deeper feelings.
Composed: 2003
".
Composed: 1997
and can be considered the centrepiece of the album.
From the band's website:
This is about the lead up and aftermath of that most famous of battles fought in the Meadow of Bulls (Cluain Tarbh - Clontarf
) on Good Friday
1014 between the then high king of Éire
, Brian Boru
and the king of Leinster, Mael Mórdha
. The pace is fast and furious (for Mael Mórdha
I mean) with pounding guitars and drums
, whistle
and bellowing vocals.
Composed: 2003
Composed: 2001
If Cluain Tarbh is fast then this song is misery
incarnate. Slow with lots of backing vocals, orchestration
and miserable guitars. The title pretty much explains the theme of this little ditty. If you ever feel down listening to this song will make you realise that nothing could be as terrible as what is expressed here.
Composed: 2003
over non-belief".
Composed: 2001
Composed: 1996
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 Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha is a doom metal band from Dublin, Ireland. Its name can also be written in traditional Irish typography, as Mael Mórḋa. The band's music melds doom metal with Irish folk music to create what has been referred to as "Gaelic doom metal".-History:...
's debut studio album. It was released in September 2005. The album name, along with the band name, can be written as the cover suggests, using Traditional Irish typography. The name would then be, "Cluain Tarḃ."
The album contains eight tracks, the shortest being An Tús at 0:56 long, and the longest being I Am the Wench's Bane at 10:15 long. The album is a collection of popular and newly-written material spanning a several years in the band's history.
The cover art depicts the Battle of Clontarf
Battle of Clontarf
The Battle of Clontarf took place on 23 April 1014 between the forces of Brian Boru and the forces led by the King of Leinster, Máel Mórda mac Murchada: composed mainly of his own men, Viking mercenaries from Dublin and the Orkney Islands led by his cousin Sigtrygg, as well as the one rebellious...
or Cath Chluain Tarbh and this is the primary theme of the album's art and title track. The man on the left is a native Irish Gael, presumably fighting on the side of Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig, High King of Ireland. The man on the right appears to be a Viking
Viking
The term Viking is customarily used to refer to the Norse explorers, warriors, merchants, and pirates who raided, traded, explored and settled in wide areas of Europe, Asia and the North Atlantic islands from the late 8th to the mid-11th century.These Norsemen used their famed longships to...
, fighting on the side of the King of Leinster, Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha is a doom metal band from Dublin, Ireland. Its name can also be written in traditional Irish typography, as Mael Mórḋa. The band's music melds doom metal with Irish folk music to create what has been referred to as "Gaelic doom metal".-History:...
. Both men are engaged in one-on-one combat against one another.
The album contains lyrics in both English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Irish
Irish language
Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
.
Track listing
- "An Tús" (The Beginning) – 0:56
- "Winds of One Thousand Winters" – 5:51
- "The Serpent and the Black Lake" – 6:55
- "Cluain Tarbh" (Meadow of Bulls) – 6:45
- "I Am the Wench's Bane" – 10:15
- "The Man All Hate to Love" – 4:21
- "Pauper of Souls" – 5:02
- "Realms of Insanity" – 6:41
An Tús
"An Tús" is the introduction to the album. It fades in (and out) and is what sounds like a war tune with pipes. This is possibly mimicking what could be the lead-up the Battle of ClontarfBattle of Clontarf
The Battle of Clontarf took place on 23 April 1014 between the forces of Brian Boru and the forces led by the King of Leinster, Máel Mórda mac Murchada: composed mainly of his own men, Viking mercenaries from Dublin and the Orkney Islands led by his cousin Sigtrygg, as well as the one rebellious...
, used as a metaphor
Metaphor
A metaphor is a literary figure of speech that uses an image, story or tangible thing to represent a less tangible thing or some intangible quality or idea; e.g., "Her eyes were glistening jewels." Metaphor may also be used for any rhetorical figures of speech that achieve their effects via...
for the entire album.
Winds of One Thousand Winters
This song is the beginning of Mael MórdhaMael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha is a doom metal band from Dublin, Ireland. Its name can also be written in traditional Irish typography, as Mael Mórḋa. The band's music melds doom metal with Irish folk music to create what has been referred to as "Gaelic doom metal".-History:...
's signature Ceol Breatha Gaelach on the album. This is one of the sample tracks which can be heard on their website. As explained by the band:
A complex mix of orchestration
Orchestration
Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium...
, layered guitars and drums
Drum kit
A 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 ....
, this tune expresses the misery felt by the ignorance
Ignorance
Ignorance is a state of being uninformed . The word ignorant is an adjective describing a person in the state of being unaware and is often used as an insult...
expressed towards our past
Gaels
The Gaels or Goidels are speakers of one of the Goidelic Celtic languages: Irish, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx. Goidelic speech originated in Ireland and subsequently spread to western and northern Scotland and the Isle of Man....
and the hope of a time when a king will rise to unite the clanns and revive our dying culture. The music is more textured than Cluain Tarbh as the theme deals with more subtle, deeper feelings.
Composed: 2003
The Serpent and the Black Lake
This song is stated by the band to be about the "Lure of LoveLove
Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...
".
Composed: 1997
Cluain Tarbh
The title track. This song tells the story of the Battle of ClontarfBattle of Clontarf
The Battle of Clontarf took place on 23 April 1014 between the forces of Brian Boru and the forces led by the King of Leinster, Máel Mórda mac Murchada: composed mainly of his own men, Viking mercenaries from Dublin and the Orkney Islands led by his cousin Sigtrygg, as well as the one rebellious...
and can be considered the centrepiece of the album.
From the band's website:
This is about the lead up and aftermath of that most famous of battles fought in the Meadow of Bulls (Cluain Tarbh - Clontarf
Clontarf, Dublin
Clontarf is a coastal suburb on the northside of Dublin, in Ireland. It is most famous for giving the name to the Battle of Clontarf in 1014, in which Brian Boru, High King of Ireland, defeated the Vikings of Dublin and their allies, the Irish of Leinster. This battle, which extended to districts...
) on Good Friday
Good Friday
Good Friday , is a religious holiday observed primarily by Christians commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and his death at Calvary. The holiday is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum on the Friday preceding Easter Sunday, and may coincide with the Jewish observance of...
1014 between the then high king of Éire
Éire
is the Irish name for the island of Ireland and the sovereign state of the same name.- Etymology :The modern Irish Éire evolved from the Old Irish word Ériu, which was the name of a Gaelic goddess. Ériu is generally believed to have been the matron goddess of Ireland, a goddess of sovereignty, or...
, Brian Boru
Brian Boru
Brian Bóruma mac Cennétig, , , was an Irish king who ended the domination of the High Kingship of Ireland by the Uí Néill. Building on the achievements of his father, Cennétig mac Lorcain, and especially his elder brother, Mathgamain, Brian first made himself King of Munster, then subjugated...
and the king of Leinster, Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha is a doom metal band from Dublin, Ireland. Its name can also be written in traditional Irish typography, as Mael Mórḋa. The band's music melds doom metal with Irish folk music to create what has been referred to as "Gaelic doom metal".-History:...
. The pace is fast and furious (for Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha
Mael Mórdha is a doom metal band from Dublin, Ireland. Its name can also be written in traditional Irish typography, as Mael Mórḋa. The band's music melds doom metal with Irish folk music to create what has been referred to as "Gaelic doom metal".-History:...
I mean) with pounding guitars and drums
Drum kit
A 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 ....
, whistle
Whistle
A whistle or call is a simple aerophone, an instrument which produces sound from a stream of forced air. It may be mouth-operated, or powered by air pressure, steam, or other means...
and bellowing vocals.
Composed: 2003
I Am the Wench's Bane
This is the longest song on the album. It is said to be "on the relationship between the Wench and Her Bane".Composed: 2001
The Man All Hate to Love
From the band's website:If Cluain Tarbh is fast then this song is misery
Misery
Misery is a psychological horror novel by Stephen King. The novel was nominated for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1988, and was later made into a Hollywood film and an off-Broadway play of the same name.-Plot summary:...
incarnate. Slow with lots of backing vocals, orchestration
Orchestration
Orchestration is the study or practice of writing music for an orchestra or of adapting for orchestra music composed for another medium...
and miserable guitars. The title pretty much explains the theme of this little ditty. If you ever feel down listening to this song will make you realise that nothing could be as terrible as what is expressed here.
Composed: 2003
Pauper of Souls
This song is stated to be about "the merits of beliefBelief
Belief is the psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true.-Belief, knowledge and epistemology:The terms belief and knowledge are used differently in philosophy....
over non-belief".
Composed: 2001
Realms of Insanity
This song is apparently "open to interpretation". No further information is given.Composed: 1996