My neighbors in Jersey had snowmobiles... and a beagle who barked a lot.

Ok, one of the best parts of using the blog is that I can make 3 posts in the same day... You'd think I don't have any work to be doing, but au contraire mon fraire! its piling up as we speak! I listen to music while I work and sometimes I just gotta talk about this stuff I'm listening to... This album just came out in the States on Tuesday (Rhapsody comes through with yet another day-of-release addition) and I have to admit that I approached it with a little hesitation. This band has a little of that nasty "hype" word associated with them, especially unfortunate these days if you're from the UK. Nearly impossible for most hyped bands from across the pond to escape the endless Coldplay and Radiohead comparisons. This band from Belfast, Northern Ireland, however, shies away from those influences (although few bands can completely escape them) and tends more towards the upbeat indie rock scene that would have caused me to place their origins somewhere in our lovely country if I didn't know better. So, this album is winning me over... and I'm fighting it all the way. But everytime my mind starts to wander back to my work I am pulled back into their songs by either a driving, pulsing guitar riff or a bit of interesting instrumentation or a hook so catchy no lip is safe... Would love to hear what others of you think about this one. Its rather accessible in places so who knows? maybe they'll hit it over here. Enjoy! Snow Patrol - Final Straw