SOW: Spitting Games by Snow Patrol

September 26, 2003 | 10 Comments

The Artist: Snow Partol
The Song: Spitting Games
The Album: Final Straw
Released 2003

On of my favorite things in life is discovering new music. That is one of the reasons why I started posting my Song of The Week — so that I can share something I truly enjoy and maybe pass along some good music as well.

There are times when you take a chance on something you’ve never heard before and you know, based on a quick listen, that you’ve found something special.

That’s how I felt earlier this week when, based on a recommendation, I picked up Final Straw by the Glasgow-based Snow Patrol. It’s only available on import right now in the US and I’d never heard of them before, so I really had no idea what to expect. After my first listen I knew this had to supply this week’s song. It was well worth the effort to acquire.

This is great stuff, I’ll not be surprised if they make it big here in the states and I imagine they are making waves in the UK at this moment. Final Straw is a collection of great songs that pretty much run the gambit of musical style.

Snow Patrol has a sound all their own, but I imagine many folks would think they have a rough emo/indie/pop sound, like Radiohead meets The New Pornographers or something. I’ve still not been able to get my head around it except to say I really, really like it.

It’s very catchy on many tracks, like this week’s song “Spitting Games” — just try and listen and not hum along — and at times a bit brooding like on the excellent “Run”.

In any event, this is the newest of my new, check it out and hopefully we’ll be hearing a lot more from Snow Patrol.

Recommended if you like: The New Pornographers, Radiohead, Weezer, Pete Yorn, Coldplay, Ben Lee, Travis, The Postal Service

Filed under: Song of The Week

Comments

1. Kyle T. said:

That is a catchy tune…doo do do, duh do do…I like it. Great recommendation, I’ll have to check them out. THANKS!

Posted on September 26, 2003 02:08 PM | #

2. Mark said:

Ah, thanks for the reminder! I bought the previous Snow Patrol album, “Songs for Polar Bears”, a few years back, thoroughly enjoyed it, but they slipped off my radar.

Check out some of the other artists on the Jeepster label – Belle & Sebastian, The Gentle Waves, Looper and Salako – if you’re looking for something with a similar vibe.

You may also like to check out some albums by Broadcast, particularly “The Noise Made By People” and “Haha Sound”, on Warp Records.

The Warp Records web site is also worth checking out by pure virtue that it’s a great example of a Flash-based website that’s not bandwidth-consuming, is very functional and good to fiddle with and perfectly encapsulates the branding of the label.

Posted on September 28, 2003 06:22 AM | #

3. kyle said:

I’d recommend checking out The Reindeer Section too. Gary from Snow Patrol is a predominant force in the band that also boasts members of Mogwai, Belle and Sebastian, Arab Strap, and more.

Great track selection, though. I’ve been hoping to get my hands on some Snow Patrol albums for a while, but they’re hard to come by on the cheap here in Canada.

Posted on September 29, 2003 07:42 AM | #

4. Cat said:

If you like Final Straw check out the album before this-When it’s all over we’ll still have to clean up. It’s really beautiful check out black and Blue. I’m also going to Snow Patrol gig tonight in local pub so yeah me!

Posted on October 3, 2003 05:23 AM | #

5. emma said:

just went to see snow patrol at necastle union, it was the first gig of their mini-tour and it was amazing. they said it was their biggest crowd yet! if ever anybody gets the chance to get tickets you have to go and see them, one of the best bands i have seen live.

Posted on March 7, 2004 01:42 AM | #

6. mary said:

Very refreshing. The perfect thing for a carfree sunny Sunday afternoon.

Posted on March 14, 2004 04:23 PM | #

7. Fuse said:

Wanna hang out with Snow Patrol? They’re’s on IMX, FUSE’s daily live show on Wednesday, April 21st. You need to be available that day from 4:30pm-7:00pm. If you’re between the ages of 14-25 and in the NYC area, please e-mail us at FuseAudience@fuse.tv . Our studio is centrally located, across the street from Madison Square Garden and Penn Station (7th Avenue between 31st and 32nd Streets). In your e-mail, be sure to put Snow Patrol in the subject line, and include all your contact info. (We mean your digits!) Space is limited—first come, first served—if you snooze, you lose!

If you can’t make it, be sure to check out Snow Patrol on IMX, LIVE on Fuse from 6pm-7pm EST (with a repeat presentation at 10pm-midnight EST) on Wednesday, April 21st.

Go to www.fuse.tv to find Fuse on your local cable system.

Posted on April 21, 2004 10:10 AM | #

8. Ivy said:

Ooooh I love Snow Patrol!!!!!!!!!!
I can’t get enough of them! -bounces-

Posted on April 26, 2004 10:43 PM | #

9. yoshigi said:

I bought Final straw last nite.
And I got these guy’s CD(The New Pornographers, Radiohead, Weezer, Pete Yorn…)

Im live in taipel,so I just can buy pete and snow partrol in sg’s HMV.

I think “chochlate” is a great song,too.
I heard it before on virgin radio.
Its my favorite one.

Posted on July 8, 2004 02:46 AM | #

10. claire said:

the album final straw is a refreshing mix of catchy up beat numbers and beautiful ballads which i really love i would throughly recommend the album when its all over we still have to clear up as that has some great tunes on it and their new album the trip which has a compilation of songs mixed by snow patrol them selves which they play at their legendary after show parties

Snow Patrol Rock!

Posted on November 6, 2004 04:38 PM | #