and YAY!!! i hope you guys have fun at ur concert!!!! :D

Thanks! And thanks again! For the videos, perfect timing cause I need to take a break from this crap biochem homework. Off to watch em!

 

 

 

 

Edit: AMAZING! My goshhh I loved "Set fire to the third bar". I can't contain my excitement!!!!

Oy I dont think i can watch them before our concert.... it might increase my anxiety and well i would litterally be off the wall if it was!

 

Thanks TLo and I shall watch them the second i get home for the fact of memories!

Holy crap tommorow is the show!!!! I am so excited, I have no idea how on earth I am going to sleep!!!! Oy, see you tommorow Marisa!

Tomorrow? OMG. Tomorrow!

I think I actually might combust. haha

But yes, I hope I see ya in the front. Not sure if you will know who I am. So I will just randomly ask ppl if they are named Ally from ohio. LOL

Snow Patrol proves to be a second-rate Coldplay

 

Atop the charts in the U.K., the five-piece indie rockers impress at times, but seriously lack range.

 

Coldplay is on a much-deserved hiatus after touring the world this year, but their spirit appears to be living on in the form of Scotland-based Snow Patrol.

 

The indie rockers, who actually hail from Northern Ireland and have been around slightly longer than Coldplay, performed to a full house at the Electric Factory Saturday night. But as hundreds of girls pined for the lads with the sensitive songs, it was all a bit too similar to their British counterparts - from slightly dorky frontman Gary Lightbody right down to the lighting.

 

There is, however, one big difference between the two: Coldplay is far more talented. They've got far better songs and a frontman (Chris Martin) with a far better voice.

 

Comparing Snow Patrol to one of the biggest bands in the world may not be exactly fair - they're still a pretty good band in their own right. And their latest album Eyes Open, may be their best work yet. That said, there's not a whole lot of range from song to song, which is even more noticeable in their live performances.

 

Take methodical verses all sung around the same tempo over slow, driving strum patterns, follow with sentimental chorus and repeat. It's not that it's entirely bad, it's just that after 45 minutes it gets, well ... boring.

 

Which is odd for a band who showed they're capable of mixing it up a little with their 2001 album, When It's All Over We Still Have to Clear Up. Of course from their setlist, you'd have no idea they've been around that long because it was comprised entirely of material from Eyes Open and 2004's Final Straw.

 

While they're able to get by on a nice chunk of very good songwriting in the form of the usual hits - "Spitting Games," "Chasing Cars," "How to Be Dead" and "Run" - the rest is mostly indistinct filler.

 

An energetic Lightbody does his best to sell it all and plays the part of frontman well, but when your material is average, your voice is average and your band is average, you're an average band.

 

A recent review described Snow Patrol by calling them Coldplay with cojones. They'd be lucky to be Coldplay without cojones.

 

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?BRD=1725&dept_id=498331&newsid=17191360&PAG=461&rfi=9

wow u guys are like AT the concert RIGHT NOW!!!! :D hope u guys are having fun hehe

It was beyond belief. Yeesh I am TIRED. but high as the highest kite. I can;t wait to see them again. and again.

 

I got to meet Ally ( such a sweetie) when I finally realized it was her, we were both flustered and babbling from meeting the band. Pics and full story laterr.

 

Sneaky peek:

:laugh3::laugh3::laugh3::D:D:D:D

 

Hey Ally, glad you are happy happy happy with the pics. I def wanted to give you the honor of posting them. Cause it's like your dream come true!

OMG thats all i can mange to say about the concert! I did ge to meet Marisa who is amazingly awesome by the way. And yes as marisa said we did get to meet the band and it was AMAZING!!!!!!! In all Honesty one of the best nights of my life hands down! I have to run but i will give you all my story later!

 

Ally

 

 

Marisa your amazing and yes it was like a dream come true! I will have to post later though cause i have to run. Pics later to come this evening!

good to see you got home safely! :)

 

 

Bye!

awww YAY!!!! thats awesome guys!!!! did u wait outside for them to come out after the concert??

 

IM SO HAPPY FOR YOU :D (i am smiling like a dork - much like gary in that picture - at work hahahh)

We did!!!

 

First off had to go alone because this was a rescheduled show from June and the friends that were expected to go had classes.

Traffic sucked, so I got there at 5:30ish. Luckily not more than 25 ppl were in line already, and then they split up into guys and girls for security.

About 10 mins before they let us in, an alternate entrance door opened and out walked the guys. Not many ppl noticed I mumbled " hey ohhh guys!" and pulled my camera out of my purse. Then as they kept walking I yelled " HEY WHERE ARE YOU GOING!???" and no one turned around but I think it was their manager who motioned back to me with his hands: to get something to eat.

 

Wooo I was sooo in shock. the doors opened and I was 2nd from the rail. and had a great view through 2 tall guys shoulders. Augustana was the opener. I really enjoyed their set! The lead singer was extra scruffy and thin but his voice was really raw and played well off the harmonica and music.

 

Snow Patrol was absolutely stunning. wow. I still can't get over how much fun I had dancing wildly and singing along. Counting down the days until FEB! Open your Eyes had to be my favorite song and Tiny Little Fractures closed it out. I missed Hands Open, maybe next time.

 

So after the show let out I went straight to the back entrance, which is where my car was parked anyway. The tour busses were like 15 ft from my car. so I was either going to sit in my car until they came out or just stand outside. but there were a few already waiting so I joined in. Wehn they finally came out there was at least 50 ppl waiting. I think they were impressed! I had my ticket stub, Final Straw CD booklet, and camera ready!

 

Gary, Tom and Jonny came out first and I scurried over. I think Tom and Jonny were drinking some Coronas! I was in awe. Such gentlemen! never had I met anyone famous, so that old saying of " keeping cool and calm" went out the window. I was babbbling and turning red. oh god what an embarassment. But I didnt' want to be rude and hold them up so I hope I wasnt like crazy or anything.

 

Next was Paul, gosh he is so sweet. he has a delicat face and soft voice. Some girls who were following them on tour were asking him about some scarf they had made for him a while back. They said he didnt remember it but he did and even described it, AWW! And because of that she would bring him cookies to the Chicago show the next night. lol

 

But then it was a waiting game for Nathan. But it was worth it! I finally met up with Ally and we talked and she was clearly in love with Nathan. haha It was great he had a drink and she asked well what is it? and it was just some vodka and lemonade. mmm he set the cup down while he was signing stuff and we like guarded it from anyone spilling it.

 

The funniest thing ever was how they made us move away from the building becuase they had to move the bus, so there was no light in the middle of the parking lot, and he couldn't see very well. So I jumped into action and remembered that I had a huge flashlight in my car so I grabbed that and was the spotlight girl for a while. omg I am such a spazzz. We chatted about the upcoming Us tour. and Ally confessed her physical attraction tohim by declaring, " I just have to get this out, you are so much hotter in person!! " WHAT A RIOT!

So then we approached Gary again for more pics and chatting. I said I hoped he liked Michigan and I wish that they would have played all night! LAME I KNOW! and then as I left

Me:"Hey Gary, Good Night! aaaaaand.......sleep tight!"

 

 

 

 

 

pics from before and after the show coming up. the others need editing still.

Marisa did u take pics during the show?!?! I did and some of them came out but most of them are crap! I will post the good ones once they get uploaded to my computer! My story to come soon!

 

Ally

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

me and Ally and her loverboy. :lol:

 

 

 

Yes, but I had difficulties with the camera, so I'm editing and resizing them right now

tom is the nicest person in the world! we didnt get to talk to him this time around.. and i was sad. i missed him haha

 

GREAT PICTURES!!!! i dont think i coudlve handled talking to paul.. lol *faint*

He was! If I wasn't spazzing out, I could have been at such ease.

I was like "here please use my hands so that you can sign ( my Cd booklet and ticket stub)" I had them opened palm. Tom's like "Sure! haha"

I had to refrain from cracking a joke about " Hands Open". :P

Snow patrol is becoming huge now. im happy for them

Wow! Marisa, you're so lucky.

Oh wow Marisa I love how you explain me and my spazzing out about Nathan! Oy Oy! I so didnt say i need to get this out I said Im going to be bold here and then I told him that he is freakin Hott! lol. I like the caption you have for our pic " Me Allyand her loverboy" yeah! lol

 

All honesty I have never been as lucky as I was that night. Oy such fun and excitement! Im sad its over though. Here are some pics!

 

 

 

Great pics, although I'm slightly jealous! hehe

FOR SNOW PATROL, THINGS ARE HEATING UP

 

Historically, a surprising number of bands ''Big in the U.K.'' have had a hard time breaking through in America.

 

Snow Patrol, however, had a hard time getting to America, at least this year.

 

Case in point: Snow Patrol's fourth album, ''Eyes Open,'' released overseas May 1, went straight to the top of the album charts in the United Kingdom, giving the epic indie-rock band its first No. 1 record. It was released here May 9, and a week later, its leadoff single, ''Chasing Cars,'' was featured prominently in the season finale of the hit television series ''Grey's Anatomy.'' The song's yearning refrain -- ''All that I am, all that I ever was/ Is here in your perfect eyes,'' sung against the backdrop of one major character dying and another reviving, as well as a romantic relationship imploding -- sounded almost customized. Alexandra Patsavas, the show's music supervisor, called it ''a beautiful and complex song (that) served as the perfect soundtrack to a series of very complex moments.''

 

By the next day, ''Chasing Cars'' was the No. 1 downloaded tune on iTunes, and it was quickly embraced by radio and MTV, particularly after the band re-edited the video with footage from the show. A week later, Snow Patrol's ''Open Your Eyes'' provided end music for the season finale of ''ER.''

 

So a concurrent American tour supporting ''Eyes Open'' would have been a major boon for Snow Patrol. Except that three dates in, the band -- three Irishmen and two Scots based in Glasgow -- had to postpone the tour after lead singer and songwriter Gary Lightbody, beset by chronic laryngitis and barely able to hit notes, was ordered by doctors not to sing until the end of July because of polyps on his vocal cords.

 

''I lost my voice,'' Lightbody says clearly now, ''not a good thing for a lead singer in a band that relies heavily on vocals.''

 

Then dates rescheduled to August fell victim to airport security crackdowns after a terrorist plot to down flights between the United Kingdom and the United States was exposed. Only two of the band's five members arrived here for a series of West Coast shows. The others, including Lightbody, were grounded at London's Heathrow Airport after flying in from Norway and missing their connecting flights.

 

''It's pretty chaotic trying to travel from the U.K. to America at the moment,'' Lightbody said recently from Edinburgh, Scotland. In Edinburgh, Snow Patrol was about to play to a stadium crowd of 20,000, and, Lightbody said, his voice was feeling fine. ''We're back to full-fighting fitness,'' he says, ''and definitely ready to tackle the next American tour.''

 

Fortunately, there are new exposure opportunities in the wake of the delays. Tuesday saw the release of both the season two DVD and soundtrack for ''Grey's Anatomy.'' The latter includes a new acoustic version of ''Chasing Cars,'' recorded specifically for the soundtrack. And Friday marked the opening of ''Scrubs'' star Zach Braff's new movie, ''The Last Kiss,'' featuring an older Snow Patrol song, ''Chocolate.''

 

The TV boosts ''took us by surprise,'' Lightbody says. ''We get offered adverts a lot and we always say no, but I guess the record companies have deals to supply the television shows with music, and you don't really know about it till it happens sometimes. I don't think we would have said no anyways -- they're shows that we watch.''

 

In any event, ''it's extraordinary how much of an effect that had,'' he says. ''I've heard figures between 20 million and 25 million (viewers) watched (the season finales), and even if you go to the lower end of that, it's staggering.''

 

Buzz being what it is, when Snow Patrol started touring here in 2004, they were playing to 200 to 400 people a night, ''which is a luxury,'' Lightbody says. ''And we just kept coming back, and every time we did, we played to more and more people. And that is the old-fashioned way of doing things, and the most satisfying as well.''

 

Formed in 1994 at Scotland's University of Dundee, the band started out as Shrug, worked briefly as Polar Bear and became Snow Patrol in 1995 to avoid a lawsuit by former Jane's Addiction bassist James Avery, who had a claim on the name. Two EPs and a pair of albums for Scottish indie label Jeepster (home of Belle & Sebastian) didn't sell particularly well but did secure Lightbody's reputation as a sensitive chronicler of distressed hearts and yearning souls in such songs as ''Downhill From Here,'' ''One Hundred Things You Should Have Done in Bed'' and ''If I'd Found the Right Words to Say.'' The man seemed to have a lot of girlfriend trouble.

 

''I think I'm a hapless romantic in that I'm very idealistic about everything and my standards are just extremely high,'' Lightbody explains, not at all morosely. ''I always overthink everything far too much; that's where the problems lie, that's why every relationship I've ever been in has failed. I do have a very self-destructive streak.''

 

But, he says, ''all the songs are about me being the (idiot), not anybody else, and that's important.''

 

Still, Snow Patrol didn't get lumped in with the likes of Coldplay and Keane until the addition of guitarist Nathan Connelly in 2002 and the 2004 release of ''Final Straw,'' a collection of earnest ballads and singalong anthems underscored by lovelorn lyrics and the glossy pop grandeur of such radio-friendly tracks as ''Somewhere a Clock Is Ticking'' (''Grey's Anatomy'' used that one, too), ''Run'' and ''Chocolate.'' The album sold more than 2 million copies in the United Kingdom, and American audiences began to take notice as well, purchasing 250,000 copies.

 

http://www.montereyherald.com/mld/montereyherald/living/15541783.htm

Things are heating up for Snow Patrol

 

WASHINGTON — Historically, a surprising number of bands "Big in the U.K." have had a hard time breaking through in America.

 

Snow Patrol, however, had a hard time getting to America, at least this year.

 

Case in point: Snow Patrol's fourth album, Eyes Open, released overseas May 1, went straight to the top of the album charts in the United Kingdom, giving the epic indie-rock band its first No. 1 record. It was released here May 9, and a week later, its leadoff single, Chasing Cars, was featured prominently in the season finale of the hit television series Grey's Anatomy. The song's yearning refrain — "All that I am, all that I ever was/ Is here in your perfect eyes," sung against the backdrop of one major character dying and another reviving, as well as a romantic relationship imploding — sounded almost customized. Alexandra Patsavas, the show's music supervisor, called it "a beautiful and complex song (that) served as the perfect soundtrack to a series of very complex moments."

 

By the next day, Chasing Cars was the No. 1 downloaded tune on iTunes, and it was quickly embraced by radio and MTV, particularly after the band re-edited the video with footage from the show. A week later, Snow Patrol's Open Your Eyes provided end music for the season finale of ER.

 

So a concurrent American tour supporting Eyes Open would have been a major boon for Snow Patrol. Except that three dates in, the band — three Irishmen and two Scots based in Glasgow — had to postpone the tour after lead singer and songwriter Gary Lightbody, beset by chronic laryngitis and barely able to hit notes, was ordered by doctors not to sing until the end of July because of polyps on his vocal cords.

 

"I lost my voice," Lightbody says clearly now, "not a good thing for a lead singer in a band that relies heavily on vocals."

 

Then dates rescheduled to August fell victim to airport security crackdowns after a terrorist plot to down flights between the United Kingdom and the United States was exposed. Only two of the band's five members arrived here for a series of West Coast shows. The others, including Lightbody, were grounded at London's Heathrow Airport after flying in from Norway and missing their connecting flights.

 

"It's pretty chaotic trying to travel from the U.K. to America at the moment," Lightbody said recently from Edinburgh, Scotland. In Edinburgh, Snow Patrol was about to play to a stadium crowd of 20,000, and, Lightbody said, his voice was feeling fine. "We're back to full-fighting fitness," he says, "and definitely ready to tackle the next American tour."

 

Fortunately, there are new exposure opportunities in the wake of the delays. Last week brought the release of both the season two DVD and soundtrack for Grey's Anatomy. The latter includes a new acoustic version of Chasing Cars, recorded specifically for the soundtrack. And Sept. 15 marks the opening of Scrubs star Zach Braff's new movie, The Last Kiss, featuring an older Snow Patrol song, Chocolate.

 

The TV boosts "took us by surprise," Lightbody says. "We get offered adverts a lot and we always say no, but I guess the record companies have deals to supply the television shows with music, and you don't really know about it till it happens sometimes. I don't think we would have said no anyways — they're shows that we watch." In any event, "it's extraordinary how much of an effect that had," he says. "I've heard figures between 20 and 25 million (viewers) watched (the season finales), and even if you go to the lower end of that, it's staggering."

 

Buzz being what it is, when Snow Patrol started touring here in 2004, they were playing to 200 to 400 people a night, "which is a luxury," Lightbody says. "And we just kept coming back, and every time we did, we played to more and more people. And that is the old-fashioned way of doing things, and the most satisfying as well."

 

Formed in 1994 at Scotland's University of Dundee, the band started out as Shrug, worked briefly as Polar Bear and became Snow Patrol in 1995 to avoid a lawsuit by former Jane's Addiction bassist James Avery, who had a claim on the name. Two EPs and a pair of albums for Scottish indie label Jeepster (home of Belle & Sebastian) didn't sell particularly well but did secure Lightbody's reputation as a sensitive chronicler of distressed hearts and yearning souls in such songs as Downhill From Here, One Hundred Things You Should Have Done in Bed and If I'd Found the Right Words to Say. The man seemed to have a lot of girlfriend trouble.

 

"I think I'm a hapless romantic in that I'm very idealistic about everything and my standards are just extremely high," Lightbody explains, not at all morosely. "I always overthink everything far too much; that's where the problems lie, that's why every relationship I've ever been in has failed. I do have a very self-destructive streak."

 

But, he says, "all the songs are about me being the (idiot), not anybody else, and that's important."

 

Still, Snow Patrol didn't get lumped in with the likes of Coldplay and Keane until the addition of guitarist Nathan Connelly in 2002 and the 2004 release of Final Straw, a collection of earnest ballads and singalong anthems underscored by lovelorn lyrics and the glossy pop grandeur of such radio-friendly tracks as Somewhere a Clock Is Ticking (Grey's Anatomy used that one, too), Run and Chocolate. The album sold more than 2 million copies in the United Kingdom, and American audiences began to take notice as well, purchasing 250,000 copies.

 

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/ent/4184456.html

www.myspace.com/thecakesale

 

there is a song called "Some Surprise" with Gary Lightbody and Lisa Hannigan (you will recognize her voice, because she does vocals with Damien Rice)

 

It's the sweetest song. And the compilation is for Oxfam. :D

dunno why but i never gave a chance to these guys