Snow Patrol // The Forest Is The Path // Album Review

So let me lay the scene, shizzle is cray cray at the moment, there just are not enough hours in the day right now to get what needs to be done! Yesterday I realised I have this album sitting in my inbox to review and the enormity of this release for anyone on the local scene, Publicists, and Promoters is huge! So no pressure! After all it marks the return of Northern Ireland’s favourite sons Snow Patrol to the scene once again after a six-year absence and 2018’s ‘Wilderness’. Now as a “Norn Irish Mawn” it’s literally an unspoken rule that I need to step up to the plate and review here, no ifs or buts! So here we go, and again bear in mind in the midst of all the chaos I sat down yesterday and stuck it on to see what we were all awaiting, whilst wondering where the hell I am going to find the time to review this properly! And then it hit me, the album, the music just flowed over me like a warm comfort blanket on a cold winters night, this glorious collection of songs playing in the background whilst the veins in my head pumped with the stress of it all just calmed me, took over and right there, right then delivered exactly what I needed to be grounded once again.

Now that’s a rare thing, believe it or not, I still haven’t seen Snow Patrol live, and I am checking my phone to see if I have a Snow Patrol album on my phone and praise the sweet baby Jesus I do! Phew! 2003’s ‘Final Straw’ and 2006’s ‘Eyes Open’ so clearly I am not your stereotypical Snow Patrol fan, but I can appreciate all genres of music, and I would be lying if I was to plat down the visibility of the band over the years, especially here in Northern Ireland and the impact they have on the local scene and of course in a broader sense Gary’s own involvement with supporting the Arts here also and young musicians getting a foot up via the like of The Oh Yeah Centre and supporting even The Distortion Project with grants to help get local musicians recording and putting their music out there. A lot has to be admired for sure, their Ward Park hometown show in Bangor is still spoken about with legendary status, so Snow Patrol will always be in the hearts and minds of Northern Irelands music fans the world over, but here we are in 2024 almost two decades on from my last venture into Snow Patrol and ‘Eyes Open’ and what did I make of ‘The Forest Is The Path’ let me tell you, this is a slice of sonic perfection.

As the opening track ‘All’ kicks in there is a quite sedate feel, which was unexpected, but it gently eases you in as the rousing chorus hits you and the first signature Snow Patrol anthemic chorus just resonates. That is a theme across the album, unmistakable, inescapable, the sonic earworms that the guys embed in your brain should come with a health warning. ‘The Beginning’ opens with Gary’s vocals luring you into a false sense of security with a fragility before the crashing drums break through to drive home the song’s intensity, a real banger that you can just imagine live driving the audience into a frenzy. The album itself is a wall to wall singles, you could pick anything off the album and toss it out into the ether and it would land and resonate, it’s a testament to the songwriting capabilities of all involved that they have honed in on their sound and nailed it. The album just ebbs and flows beautifully, carefully taking you on the most glorious sonic road trip, roof down, music cranked with the wind in your hair, just you and your significant other living your best life.

There is a beautiful resonate quality to the album, production, as you would expect these days, is sublime, showcasing all the subtle nuances thrown in to engross you in the music, one of the highlights for me was ‘These Lies’ a side to Snow Patrol and Gary I hadn’t heard before, a beautifully haunting track of real, raw, emotive quality. A truly beautiful track. Before you know it the twelve tracks will have flown by and you’ll be reaching for that repeat button.

The guys play Belfast’s Ulster Hall this evening as an album launch show and a return to a more intimate venue also which will be packed to the rafters with the most dedicated hardcore Snow Patrol fans, listening to these tracks in the flesh getting their first outing before the band returns to their usually setting of The SSE in 2025. Tonight will indeed be something very special, a historic venue embracing one of Northern Ireland’s cherished bands.

That’s it folks, my 50 cents worth, Sit is reassuring that now Patrol have lost none of their charm and if possible just like a fine wine are getting better with age. I said it before and I’ll say it again, The Forest Is The Path is a slice of sonic perfection. One to be cherished by old fans and will no doubt bring along an army of new ones into 2024 and beyond.

‘The Forest Is The Path’ arrives today via Polydor Records

Review: Mark