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Snow Patrol At The CIA

Posted by Tom W from Cardiff - Published on 18/03/2009 at 16:19
0 comments » - Tagged as Music, Stage

WORDS: Tom Bevan & Tom Williams (Sprout Editorial Group)

First support band Cashier No. 9 had potential, but drowned themselves out by using three guitars. We're sure their lyrical intentions were good, wejust couldn't hear them.

Then White Lies, a band with epic qualities. Their pieces were powerful and electrifying. Someone said they had seen them on MTV the day before. They will be huge.

After recently releasing their fifth studio album, A Hundred Million Suns, the boys from Belfast hit the road on their Take Back The Cities Tour named after the first single on the album. This was the ninth gig of this nationwide extravaganza and a spectacle of quality.

A few technical hitches marred opener If There'sA Rocket Tie Me To It. Gary Lightbody's earpiece wasn't working properly, so he fiddled with it more than he performed, which meant the introduction wasn't quite what it should have been.

It didn't set the tone for the rest of the concert. "This is the first hitch of the whole tour", apparently, and although there were a couple of times where the guitars were out of timing with each other, it didn’t stop it being explosive.

The set featured a great mix from their three major albums including their new one, which the band describe as their "most complete yet".

But with songs such as Chasing Cars, "one of the most emotionally potent tunes of the 21st century" and awarded Best Song Of All Time by the listeners of Virgin Radio; and Run, a top five hit, they would have a hard job not to impress those who had invested.

One fan to our left said the concert was "the most interactive, well-organised and entertaining gig I have ever been to". Indeed, all were captivated by Lightbody's genuine desire to communicate and by his Irish charm and wit.

Run is possibly best known for Leona Lewis' rendition in December 2008, when it entered the UK Singles Chart at number one on downloads alone, and selling 69,244 in just two days.

Lightbody made all get their phones out and sway in the darkness as he cranked up the song again and thousands of tiny spotlights meandered through the air.

The song Set The Fire To The Third Bar features the pure and infectious voice of Martha Wainwright, but the audience was so shocked when she came on, met with shrieks of delight. Perfect harmony.

With so many trademark songs, they could have played almost anything to finish. Take Back The City blasted out ceremoniously, but the concert didn't end there. Two more songs came; the curtain dropped.

Chants. Star Wars-like writing on the curtain. You're All I Have closed everything: feelgood song of the Millennium. A superb choice to end the concert on, lively, happy, unexpected, and more of a victory lap.

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