Super group take back the city

Mar 2 2009 By Andy Welch

With Snow Patrol heading to Birmingham, Andy Welch meets the band’s frontman.

It is funny how you expect people to look a certain way depending on their job.

Off the pitch, the majority of professional footballers are walking proof that money can’t buy taste, while many pop stars specialise in wearing the sort of clobber most people wouldn’t – and shouldn’t – wear through fear of upsetting the neighbours.

Can you really imagine wearing Christina Aguilera’s leather chaps, or adopting Coldplay’s Adam Ant-esque cavalry jackets in real life?

The musicians in question would argue their unorthodox fashion choices come from a desire to stand out from the crowd, or reflect their genius.

So, if in music an outfit says a thousand words, what can we deduce about Snow Patrol’s Gary Lightbody?

Today, the Northern Ireland-born singer is wearing a baggy white t-shirt, scruffy jeans and old trainers, complete with odd socks.

His hair is slightly unkempt, while his stubble about three days past five o’clock shadow. Basically, he looks completely, totally and utterly normal.

But that’s not to say the music that Snow Patrol make is ordinary.

Gary’s emotional lyrics, dominated by the themes of lost love and regret, paired with epic instrumentation, certainly appeal to the man or woman on the street. How else could they have sold seven million albums worldwide since 2003?

After releasing two misfiring albums that won little them little success, commercial or otherwise, Snow Patrol changed record labels – they’re now signed to Polydor offshoot Fiction – and became one of the biggest bands in the world.

A highlight of the festival circuit, the band’s biggest singles Run and Chasing Cars have the ability to turn a crowd of happy punters into a 50,000-strong choir.

“You can never grow tired of that, all those people singing back at you,” 32-year-old Gary says. “The first time it happened was at V Festival in 2004. No, 2003. Was it? 2004? 2003, I think so. And we played Run,” he adds, before pausing for what seems like an eternity with a pained expression.

“I think it must have been 2004,” he continues, finally.

“It was the middle of the day anyway, and we were booked for the gig months before that single came out,” he says, referring to the Snow Patrol fever that swept the UK after Run was released.

“There were 50,000 people watching us at 2pm, it was absolutely ridiculous. There was beautiful sunshine and everyone was singing along at the top of their lungs.

“That was the first festival where people went nuts for us, and ever since then every single festival has been ludicrous.

“It’s something that will always bring me very close to tears. It’s very emotional.”

Fortunately Gary doesn’t think that night after night of that kind of emotion will get too much for him on the band’s current UK tour which plays Birmingham LG Arena at the NEC on March 11. “It’s invigorating if anything. I imagine it might be exhausting by the end of the tour, maybe, but at the time, I feel anything but tired.

“We all feel... I don’t know, very privileged.”

They’ve played some huge dates in the US, where they’re a big deal thanks to their music appearing on various TV and film soundtracks.

Not long after the song Chasing Cars was played during the second series finale of Grey’s Anatomy, US Virgin Radio listeners voted it the Best Song Of All Time.

Making it big across the pond may be every band’s dream, but Gary is honest about what US success means.

“America is tough sometimes,” he admits.

“A tour there will be between six and 10 weeks, so that can get pretty arduous and has probably split up a few bands.”

It’s not surprising then that he’s excited about touring the UK.

“Touring in this country is brilliant, and you can do it in two or three weeks.

“Really, travelling is the only tough bit in what we do. Anyone in a band that’s doing well who says they have it hard is an absolute liar.”

The band formed while at the University of Dundee in 1994, although both fellow founder members Michael Morrison and Mark McClelland left in 1995 and 2005 respectively.

Before recording their most recent album, A Hundred Million Suns, the band, except Gary, had music lessons to get better at their chosen instruments.

The band was called Polar Bear before being forced to change their name after they discovered an American band had the same name.

They took their current name from a friend who always referred to them as Snow Patrol, even when they were called Polar Bear.

TICKET INFO
Wednesday March 11: LG Arena, Birmingham
Tickets: £30.00 plus booking and transaction fee from 0844 33 88 000.