“If we go anywhere new, we are like kids in a big empty house. We want to explore all these big spaces, climb into the attic and rake to pit and down into the basement and find the stuff that’s hidden away. For us, the world can never be too big .. “Gary Lightbody
The same no frills sense of adventure informs Final Straw Upcoming Releases, Snow Patrol’s third album. Already established as a heart-crushing mix of distorted British pedal rock and U.S. alternative guitar pop on home soil, the album sees the band grow up, fill out and with a bit of serenity to one of Britain’s best drives you can hear this year .
But success has not come easy and the Snow Patrol back-story began way back at Dundee University in 1994 when Lightbody joined guitarist Mark McClelland Upcoming Releases. ”Our eyes met in the crowded dance floor,” says Lightbody. ”I knew he was the one for me. We clicked musically and we liked the same bands, so we thought,” Why not one of our own? ”That was the beginning of Snow Patrol.”
Well, not quite. The first name chosen band, the duo was Polar Bear, a title also used by Janes Addiction bassist ex-, Eric Avery. When danger threatened a lawsuit, Lightbody and McClelland had a rethink and went for the equally wintry Snow Patrol. Nevertheless, they had the last laugh and the signing of the Scottish Jeepster records (home of Belle and Sebastian, among others), the three pieces, now with drummer Jonny Quinn in place, published their cheeky debut, Songs For Polar Bears in 1998th
The trio is very broad influences bled through on the album, which was later hailed by critics as an infectious pop-punk racket with a distorted amp-popping twist. ”Basically, our favorite bands were poured into them and by the time we were under the influence of American rock – the Pixies, Dinosaur Jr, Soundgarden – but we were listening to My Bloody Valentine and the first Super Furry Animals album.”
Another album, when everything is over, we still need to clarify, followed in 2001, but now the relationship between the band and Jeepster was fraying – a parting of the ways was imminent.”It happened at a weird time,” says Lightbody. ”Everyone was into garage rock, and there was talk of changing our name to” The ‘something. ”
When the fear subsided, the band relocated to its original title (Lightbody: “The last thing we wanted to do, was to change the name and lead to play Snow Patrol Songs”) shall remain and began writing Final Straw. In the meantime, Lightbody recorded an album with his solo project The Reindeer Section, which includes such Scottish luminaries as Idlewild, Arab Strap and Norman Blake of Teenage Fanclub.
Their faith in himself paid off and soon with demos for The Final Straw Upcoming Releases in circulation, the band quickly by Polydor imprint, Fiction snapped and fell into the studio with techno pivotal point, Garret Lee Upcoming Releases, aka Jacknife Lee. Meanwhile, they had an extra guitar player, took the former HMV worker, Nathan Connolly. Having already introduced in the band was joined Connolly door until he reluctantly to join. ”My mother thought I would be kidnapped by rock stars,” he sighs.
The resulting album Snow Patrol has the most head-spinning work so far are – a dive attack fizzing distorted guitar, drum beats and woozy pop anthems laced with enough heartache to fill an ocean. And influence with the themes of lost love and the very real horrors of the Iraq conflict, Lightbody texts, The Final Straw is raw emotion made flesh.
“I think it’s the first time I’ve written about something other than my own problems,” says Lightbody. ”It was a really scary time, and that the war influenced the album. There is still the subject of relationships on it, but it’s always been that on Snow Patrol albums. I’ve never had the good bits, where the relationship begins to write, it is always on when the chaos kicks in at the end. ”
Final Straw is hair-tingling stuff. Received for widespread critical acclaim after its release last year was its effect almost immediately. Both singles, Spitting Games and Run were championed by Radio One. The band, meanwhile, raised some notable admirers and last year, bearded prog-rockers, Grandaddy took them to a sold-out UK tour.
But with a new year comes a new challenge. An NME Brats show occurs in January, before the release of ‘Run’ to 26 January. It has been hailed as a classic, and when it is time to levels of ubiquity, the band are set to stay on their first U.S. tour, where they start to expect great things already. ”It’s flattering to know that much is expected of us,” says Lightbody. ”We just did not think about gaining this level of success, but that’s not to say we are not prepared for it, because we are. I just hope that at the end of the day I can still pop up in the supermarket take my milk. I do not get too much trouble when all I really want is a brew. ”
Snow Patrol Upcoming Releases have spent the latter part of 2005 and early 2006 in the studio recording their new album “Eye Open”, which is due for release on 1 May, one week on after the release of their new single “You’re All I Have” 24 April. Snow Patrol is expecting her electrifying new album, as yet, as her last album, the charts in 2004 (Final Straw) achieved with a different line-up after McCleland left the band in March 2005, with their new bassist Paul Wilson.