Photo Credit: Simon Lipman at European Space Agency
After a few years away, Snow Patrol have made a welcome return with ‘Don’t Give In’ – the first single from forthcoming album ‘Wildness’. Kicking off with Gary Lightbody’s heartfelt vocals stating the title of the track, the song was originally written for a friend of Gary’s who was going through a tough time. It was only after finishing it that he realised he was actually talking about his own battles with anxiety and depression.
With a U2 ‘Desire’-era rhythm, the song has moments of understated electronics that recall pre-‘Run’ Snow Patrol and an experimental stop-start tone that you wouldn’t expect. It seems like the break has brought them a renewed sense of purpose and poise, while they’re still retaining that poignant sense that’s served them so well. It also contains what could be a defining statement: ‘Don’t fall in love with the way things were, it will fuck up your mind’.