We can't fix this, until we break it with sticks

Continuing my trip forward in time through the album charts

20/09/24 : The Forest Is The Path - Snow Patrol

I find Snow Patrol inoffensive, if not, with the exception of a couple decent singles, exactly exciting - and I have absolutely no expectations that this will be anything different.

Well, I can assure you that the legions of Snow Patrol fans will not be rioting in the streets due to a completely unexpected change of direction. It's all perfectly serviceable, only potentially offensive in its inoffensiveness (although the Bee Gee feel to the title track is a curious choice), but "Hold Me In The Fire" did jump out at me as a decent typical Snow Patrol track and "These Lies" is a nicely slower tempo number. I'm not desperate for Snow Patrol in my life but, if forced, I'd certainly take them over Coldplay these days.

We are, unsurprisingly, at #1 with a new entry in the charts this week and the rest of the top five are Sabrina Carpenter, London Grammar (another new entry that isn't going to scare off the fans), Chappell Roan and Eminem (up from #39) - all in all, a pleasingly Oasis-free zone. Other new entries are Nilüfer Yanya (#53 - it's quite SZA like and I didn't mind it at all) and Floating Points (#90 - skittery electronica which I really quite liked).

Last week I said that David Gilmour would drop to #36 and I'm very pleased for the lad that I was quite wrong and he's at #11 - my feeling is that Snow Patrol will do slightly better and I'm going for #8. And this week's Taylor stats are one in the top ten, three in the top thirty and nine in the entire chart - and she's in grave danger of only having one version of 1989 in the charts next week, the poor lass.

Wikipedia tells us it's their eighth album and their first as a three piece band - and that's it! There's no word on either critical or commercial reception - I expect the first one will be middling and the second one will not be affected in the slightest by whatever the first one is. I did learn a fun fact from their entry though - they were the last band to play on the weekly version of Top Of The Pops.

"Customers also listened to" Razorlight, Travis, London Grammar and The Courteeners - which seems like a somewhat curious mix. There's nothing terrible about this and some of it does rise about the rest, but I've pretty much forgotten it all already.

13/09/24 - Surprisingly enjoyable

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