''Ritual'' is the third studio album from

electronic rock Electronic rock (also known as electro rock and synth rock) is a music genre that involves a combination of rock music and electronic music, featuring instruments typically found within both genres. It originates from the late 1960s when rock b ...

band

Jape Jape is a synonym for a practical joke. Jape or JAPE may also refer to: * Jape (band), an Irish electronic/rock band * JAPE (linguistics), a transformation language widely used in natural language processing * JAPE, an automated pun generator * J ...

, released on Co-op Records in 2008. It won the

Choice Music Prize The Choice Music Prize (), known for sponsorship reasons as the RTÉ Choice Music Prize is an annual music prize awarded to music from a band or solo musician who is born in the Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland or holds an Irish passport. ...

for the 2008 Irish Album of the Year in March 2009. A video for the song "Graveyard", which was filmed in an actual graveyard in Dublin, was released in May 2008 prior to the release of the album. The album features the singles "I Was a Man", "Strike Me Down" and "

Phil Lynott Philip Parris Lynott (, ; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the co-founder, lead vocalist, bassist, and primary songwriter for the hard rock band Thin Lizzy. He was known for his distinctive ...

", which was subject to an unsuccessful petition by fans to have it named the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

number one in Ireland in December 2008. When squinted at, the cover album art reveals a skull. The ''

Irish Independent The ''Irish Independent'' is an Irish daily newspaper A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray backgrou ...

''s John Meagher named ''Ritual'' his twentieth best Irish album of the 2000s.

Track listing

''Ritual'' featured ten tracks, including "Streetwise", "Graveyard" and "Strike Me Down", all of which had previously been performed live. The album was preceded by the single "I Was a Man". "Strike Me Down" was later released as a single.

Awards

The nomination of ''Ritual'' for the

was announced on 14 January 2009. ''Rituals victory was announced at a live ceremony held at

Vicar Street Vicar Street is a concert, performing arts centre and events venue in Dublin, Ireland. Located at Thomas Street, Dublin 8, Vicar Street has capacity for 1,050 people for seated performances and 1,500 people for standing gigs. The venue is ow ...

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

on 4 March 2009. The prize included a cheque for €10,000, jointly provided by the

Irish Music Rights Organisation The Irish Music Rights Organisation (IMRO) is a national performance rights organisation based in Ireland. It administers the performing right in copyright music on behalf of its members (who are Irish songwriters, composers and music publishers) ...

(IMRO) and the

Irish Recorded Music Association The Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA) is a non-profit association set up in 1999 to promote certain interests of the music industry in Ireland. It is particularly active in addressing copyright issues, and it compiles the official music ...

(IRMA), and a specially commissioned award. Frontman Richie Egan joked about a rival nominee by saying: "They all deserve the award -- sure my mother even told me that

Mick Flannery Mick Flannery (born 28 November 1983) is an Irish singer and songwriter. His debut album ''Evening Train'' resulted from his time spent studying music and management at Coláiste Stiofáin Naofa in Cork. It featured tracks which had previously ...

(nominated for his album '' White Lies'') was going to win, she said you're good, Richie, but he's gorgeous". The award was decided by a secret ballot after the twelve judges, who included

Today FM Today FM is an Irish commercial FM radio station, owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio Ireland Limited. Broadcasting since 17 March 1997, it broadcasts mostly music, with a daily news and current affairs programme. Today FM holds a licen ...

presenter

Ian Dempsey Ian Dempsey (born 16 January 1961) is an Irish presenter of television and breakfast radio. He is the long-running presenter of the breakfast show on Today FM, self-titled ''The Ian Dempsey Breakfast Show'', which runs from 6-9 am each weekday. ...

, decided that the decision was proving difficult due to a closeness in voting. Jape was amongst six of the nominees who performed at the event, with a three-song set featuring earlier in proceedings. Upon the victory, Egan posted a message of thanks via

Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...

: "Hah I won. Ten g's in the bank.. Big love and thanks for all good will x". , - , 2009 , , ''Ritual'' , , Irish Album of the Year 2008 , , , -

References

{{Authority control 2008 albums Choice Music Prize–winning albums Jape (band) albums Experimental rock albums by Irish artists Experimental pop albums 2000s in Irish music