The first, a cover of Ricky “Brother of Kim” Wilde’s ‘I Am An Astronaut’, is earmarked for a children’s charity record that’s being put together by fellow Glaswegians Belle & Sebastian.
“This was recorded when he was 10-years-old in the ‘70s,” Gary Lightbody explains. “He went on to write most of her hits including ‘Kids In America’. It has the line ‘I am a polar bear’ in it so I guess it’s appropriate – not that I’m actually a polar bear. It should be out next year.”
As devotees will know, Polar Bear was the band’s original name before they changed it to Snow Patrol.
They’ve also recorded a version of John Lennon’s ‘Isolation’ that’ll appear on an Amnesty International charity album.
As for how their own record’s going, Gary reveals that, “We got loads done last week including a very new song, which is called ‘Make This Go On Forever’ and sounds gigantic. We’ve also recorded two of Nathan’s songs which are marvelous.”
Having recorded the bulk of the record in England, Snow Patrol will be applying the finishing touches to their meisterwork in Ireland.