Run (the other way)

"Where did Snow Patrol go for seven years?", asks the headline of this BBC article, as if we might have been wondering rather than merely enjoying their silence.

It turns out that Gary Lightbody was grappling with some serious demons - chiefly drink and depression. While it's encouraging to hear of anyone managing to escape from crippling and indeed life-threatening addiction, the prospect of Snow Patrol's return is hardly something I'm relishing. In the interview, Lightbody reveals that Nick Cave is primarily to blame for getting his songwriting juices going again, with Skeleton Tree's 'Jesus Alone' the inspiration behind 'A Youth Written In Fire'.

Once upon a time, Snow Patrol were part of the respectable Scottish indie fraternity, but it's a measure of how far removed they are now that they're tourmates of and collaborators with Ed Sheeran. Needless to say, they bonded over a mutual love of Bon Iver...