Snow Patrol - Fallen Empires

Ah, good old Snow Patrol. For what seems like an eternity now the Northern Irish soft-rock gods have played second fiddle to Coldplay in the chart stakes - but that's not to belittle their success. The seminal Chasing Cars was crowned the song of the noughties by Channel 4 (UK) and has received a special award from Q Magazine, not to mention spending 106 weeks in the UK top 75 charts. Far from a one-hit wonder, though, the group are now on their sixth album - the second of which to reach the #1 spot - and show little sign of slowing down.

Sadly, the same cannot be said for their quality. As a big fan of Final Straw and Eyes Open, I was a little more than mortified by the complacency and mediocrity behind A Hundred Million Suns and the single 'Just Say Yes' that came with their greatest hits collection. Will Fallen Empires continue their careering decline, or kickstart a resurging for the band?


We begin with synths aplenty and distorted vocals on 'I'll Never Let Go', which draws more inspiration from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs than their usual efforts do, and it has an exciting pace to it - a pace sadly missing in single 'Called Out in the Dark'. Nonetheless, the electronica remains and it's a step forward for the band sonically, and has a fairly decent, if forgettable, tune. The band then quickly switch to a more conventional atmosphere on 'The Weight of Love', plodding along with an attempted dramatic drumbeat. The album's highlight though comes in 'This Isn't Everything You Are', where strings, drums and guitars work together to build their showcase 'epic' moment.

Elsewhere the highlights are mostly in the background, whether that's the backing vocals and violins on the otherwise dull 'The Garden Rules', the frenetic synths on 'Fallen Empires' or the music-box cutesiness of 'Berlin'. It seems that whilst the band are eager to experiment they've spread themselves too thin, and any sense of a cohesive album or theme have now long gone - but let's enjoy the highlights. 'Lifening' is a pretty Eyes Open derivative that relies on their reliable formula of strings and melancholy.

If you need one song about a departed lover who's left the singer for New York, go for Paloma Faith's. 'In the End' and 'Those Distant Bells' both drift past me every time I've listened to the album with absolutely nothing remarkable about them whatsoever, and whilst 'The Symphony' tries nobly to reinstate their newfound love for electronics, it comes off as a kids TV tune rather than anything substantial. Quite catchy though. "I'm aching from the bones, from the very blood of me" should tell you all you need to know about 'The President', but it's worth a listen or two if you fancy a bit of a weep. I'm not going to begin on the stupid poseur antics of placing a prelude at the end of the album, but 'Broken Bottles Form A Star (Prelude)' rounds the album off with a quirky piano splash that's more silly than interesting.


I'm a long way past caring about the exploits of Snow Patrol and that probably shows in the arrogance of some of my comments, but to be quite honest if you're looking for excitement or fulfillment in the band then you're wasting your time. They've peaked, they've got a great back catalogue for you to enjoy, but their new music continues to disappoint - but there is potential here in the more subversive elements.

Rating: 6/10
Highlights: This Isn't Everything You Are, Fallen Empires, The President, Lifening, The Symphony
Avoid: In the End, New York, Those Distant Bells

Artwork Watch: I can't name a single of their albums where the artwork has sparked interest, and that trend continues here.