I have seen this excellent band perform on two occasions in front of adoring crowds at the Witnness Festival in Dublin. I was impressed with their skill, songs and acute ability to connect with an audience. I was left with the impression that this was a band that was about to break into the big time…

This version of their latest album includes two bonus tracks and at an Amazon price of £7.99 it’s a spectacular bargain. A Northern Irish band, they sound like a heady mix of Travis, Placebo and Coldplay, and the guys are very ‘song-based’ musicians. The current single taken from the album, Run, in my view matches and may even exceed the quality the classic rock/pop of Coldplay’s Yellow. The opening track, How To Be Dead, is a charming, slow acoustic based song with great lyrics and could so easily be found on a David Kitt or Aqualung album. Lead man Gary Lightbody has a wonderful voice that convinces in both pop and heavier rock modes, and his performance here is a supreme example of his vocal quality and expression. Second track Wow ploughs a rockier furrow in the most melodic way and has rapidly become one of my favourites from the album. Gleaming Auction continues in the rock vein and adds the most attractive pop vocal harmonies to top off another splendid song, and a potential future single.

If you like strong guitar riffs then Chocolate should more than fill your appetite. The song also comes with another wonderful vocal, powerful drum rhythm and another set of strong lyrics. Snow Patrol embrace pop sensibilities throughout the album and none more so than the amazing single Run. The more I listen to this song with its peaks and troughs in pace, mega melody, great lyrics, superb vocal and wonderful instrumental arrangement, the more I wonder why it has flown to the chart number one position. It’s just about the perfect anthemic single and the highlight of this excellent album.

The album is nicely diverse in pace and mood but never loses its firm grasp on melody. For fans of then above mentioned bands, Snow Patrol will be right up your street, and you’ll end up putting it on replay time and time again. Strongly recommended.

4/5