I first heard of this band a few weeks ago when I hear 'Run' on the radio. It sounded brilliant and I couldn't wait to hear more from them so I then bought the album from WH Smith for just £5.99 (buy two albums and get £4 off).
1. How to be dead It starts off with acoustic guitars which give way to quite melodic vocals. Soon after, there are some pounding drums. Which then fade out and then the soft vocals start again for the chorus. Repeat. It is a fairly quiet track yet the rhythm is pretty fast throughout but does slow down during the chorus. It isn't the worst song in the world but it bores
2. Wow! Thankfully this one picks up the pace a little bit with an electronic guitar intro. The vocals are distorted slightly which adds to the feeling of heaviness in the track especially during the extremely catchy chorus - you will be singing this one to yourself for months! Overall this is a pure rock track unlike most of the songs on the album which would under India pop. This is one of my favorites and must be a candidate for the next single.
3. Gleaming Auction Coming
in at just over 2 minutes, this the shortest track on the album. It starts off with some keyboard playing with soft monotonous vocals before an acoustic guitar kicks in. It spurts into a more heavy style for the chorus before getting quiet again. The next and final chorus is stretched for over half a minute. If this song was a minute longer then it could have been a great track but as it is, it leaves to impression of being half done
4. Whatever's Left Another short track, this time coming in at 2 minutes 39 seconds. It is another one of the heavy tracks. The vocals start off almost whispered with a grinding guitar riff being played beneath them. The chorus is almost Coldplay-esque with some higher pitched notes followed by some normal singing. Like Gleaming Auction, it could have been a bit longer, but this song is fairly good as it is.
5. Spitting Games This was the first single from the album. The intro to this one is much more uplifting than any of the other songs so far. The vocals again are pretty quiet but the guitars manage to keep this one interesting. Not the greatest of songs to be honest - I often find myself pressing the 'skip track' button on my CD player when this one gets played.
6. Chocolate Another acoustic guitar intro leads to some loudish vocals. Despite the vocals, this one of the softer tracks on the album. This one is forgettable, uninspired and dull. Very strange choice for the next single
7. Run This, their latest single as I type this and by far their most commercially successful to date. It starts off with some gentle, whispered vocals which turn into sweet singing delivering some beautiful lyrics. This coupled with the superb instrument playing, especially in the solo at the end creates an atmosphere that means that it is impossible to listen to this song without stopping whatever it is you are doing at the time and giving 100% of your attention to the music. Yes, it is pretty commercial but it doesn’t stop it from being possibly the greatest track on the album.
8. Grazed Knees This is another soft track. More gentle vocals with a peaceful acoustic guitar. There is no drumming on this track. This is a song that tries to be beautiful but unfortunately just filters off into the background. Disappointing.
9. Ways & Means This is another track that starts with a quiet intro. It gets progressively louder and leads into the vocals. This stays pretty heavy throughout and has a pretty nice 90s guitar pop feel to it but it is certainly nothing special
10. Tiny Little Fractures This one opens with a bass riff and leads into some oooh-oooh style chanting. This would have been great 10 years ago but as it is, it sounds dated and boring.
11. Somewhere a Clock Is Ticking This is my personal highlight of the album. It starts with some almost whispered vocals with "I can do almost anything" being repeated in the background over and over again and a backing singer making higher notes occasionally. The chorus consists simply of ahhhhhhhhh ahhhhhhhhhh. There is some piano thrown in at this part to really increase the atmosphere. The pace is picked up after the second chorus with some lead guitar and more loud drums making the track extremely atmospheric. The song shows a great mix of louder and quieter parts.
12. Same This is mainly a piano driven track. The vocals are very delicate and downbeat. It's pretty similar to Somewhere A clock Is Ticking just not as good.
There is then a 2 minute gap to the two bonus tracks 'We Can Run Away Now They're All Dead' and 'Half the Fun' which are both pretty flat and unspectacular.
I've tried not to be too harsh on the album seeing it’s not really my type of music, but even so, I was left with the impression that this is a band trying to emulate the Coldplay sound but failing. The album is pretty good as background music that you don't have to think about but I wouldn't recommend buying this unless you REALLY love Britpop. It is probably worth the £6 I paid for it but if I had paid, say £13 for this I would be feeling a little annoyed right now.
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A decent review although its mostly your opinions about the music which will differ to other peoples! For instance I think that chocolate is a brilliant song as is run also
Final Straw, third album from Glasgow-based quintet Snow Patrol, is a darker, nastier and ... more
altogether bleaker beast than anything they've produced before. These are ostentatiously pop melodies that have been locked up in a basement, blindfolded over nig...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Final Straw, third album from Glasgow-based quintet Snow Patrol, is a darker, nastier and ... more
altogether bleaker beast than anything they've produced before. These are ostentatiously pop melodies that have been locked up in a basement, blindfolded over nig...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Final Straw, third album from Glasgow-based quintet Snow Patrol, is a darker, nastier and ... more
altogether bleaker beast than anything they've produced before. These are ostentatiously pop melodies that have been locked up in a basement, blindfolded over nig...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
Advantages: Swirling melodies and itchy guitars, thematic and emotive Disadvantages: No real variation in the songs, they're either grunge-y or mellow-y
Seresecros 18.06.2007 (18.06.2007)
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Review of Final Straw - Snow Patrol
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