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Intimate: Snow Patrol performed in front of 100 competition winners
More used to rocking out in front of tens of thousands, this was Snow Patrol in probably their most intimate performance since they started as a student band.
The band delivered a unique experience to 100 ecstatic competition winners last night. Organised by Virgin Radio, the show saw the group stripped from its five-strong line-up to a guitarwielding trio of Gary Lightbody, Nathan Connolly and Paul Wilson.
As the lights dimmed many fans were reduced to silence, scarcely able to take in the notion of being in touching distance of their heroes.
Acting more like a bunch of amiable students than rock stars, the band put the fans at ease, with Lightbody cracking jokes in keeping with his reputation as the kind of pop star you could take home to your mum.
They began with Chocolate. Despite the matey banter, the crowd now stood in something approaching awe as the quality of Snow Patrol's songwriting seemed to be magnified.
We were in the home of the Gibson guitar company; so it was no surprise that the amplification of the three acoustic guitars was exquisite, providing a sound that made the lack of drums and keyboards barely noticeable as the band created rhythms, basslines and melodies that left even more rhythmic tracks like How To Be Dead sounding full and rich. Unfortunately, the smallish room was clearly not set up for this number of people in this high state of excitement.
This may have been a contributing factor to the heat, which led Lightbody to quip: "I'm just going to sit here sweating profusely," as he sipped a cup of tea. The heat may have caused their guitars to go slightly out of tune, although this was remedied immediately.
A more serious tuning problem concerned Connolly's rather shaky backing vocals, which marred what would have been some beautiful harmonies.
But there was no spoiling the beauty of Run. More emotional and powerful than ever in this setting, it provided a spinetingling climax to a special night.
The concert will be broadcast on Virgin Radio on Thursday from 7pm.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
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Quite Good Alex?
Snow Patrol were awesome - and the opportunity to see a band who fill 10,000 seat venues play to a crowd of 100 people was a unique experience. Big thanks to Virgin Radio for organising the gig. Paring down the Snow Patrol sound to just 3 acoustic guitars worked well for me - can't fault the vocals or the music.
- David, London
A friend won this competiton and I went to see Snow Patrol with her. I didn't know much about them before I went to see them but I thought they were quite good, although they were a bit like James Blunt with guitars. Would I see them again? Probably not as they're quite studenty and I've grown up since my uni days!
- Alex, Stevenage, Herts
