Snow PatrolSpeaker and Booking Agent Information

Final Straw, on the other hand, proved to be a watershed moment, preparing the way for the success of 2006's Eyes Open, notably its international smash track Chasing Cars, as well as the band's future work. Although they were born in Northern Ireland, co-founders Gary Lightbody and Mark McClelland moved to Scotland as teenagers to pursue college.

In 1994, while studying at the University of Dundee, they began writing music under several band names, including Shrug and Polar Bear. In 1997, the duo changed their name to Snow Patrol and hired Jonny Quinn to play drums.

Snow Patrol signed with Jeepster Records, a tiny London-based company, and released their debut album, Songs for Polar Bears, a year later. Snow Patrol's fan base was steadily rising, and the band went to Glasgow after graduating. In April 2001, they released their second full-length album, When It's All Over, We Still Have to Clean Up.

Jeepster pulled the band from its roster the next year, forcing Lightbody to vent his frustrations by founding the Reindeer Section, a Scottish supergroup comprised of members of Mogwai and Belle & Sebastian. He also continued to write songs for Snow Patrol, including the promising ballad Run.

Snow Patrol inked a contract with Fiction Records and began recording a new album with producer Chris Lord-Alge after guitarist Nathan Connolly joined the band in 2002.

Final Straw, which included the power ballad Run as its debut single, became the band's breakout smash, spawning four Top 40 songs in the United Kingdom and selling more than four million copies worldwide.