Dropped by Jeepster

Jeepster dropped Snow Patrol in 2001, a decision that was criticised by Hot Press magazine as brainless. By July 2001, major labels had started showing interest in the band, who were cash-strapped and had no record deal. Lightbody sold a major part of his record collection to raise money to keep the band going. The singer said this time was “miserable”, but he was confident that they would get signed to another label. The music scene in the United Kingdom had turned its attention to American bands, however, and British bands were not being signed. The group spent this time writing songs. Lightbody assembled The Reindeer Section , a Scottish supergroup , and found a record label to release the project’s recordings. Quinn said that although the time was hard for everyone involved except Nathan, the question of splitting never arose. It was during this time that the band wrote ” Run ” (which had been around since 2000) on an acoustic guitar, and it later became the band’s breakthrough single. The band’s “low point” came when they played a concert to eighteen people at a strip club in High Wycombe . The show took place in a shoddy VIP area, and the management had to unscrew poles used by pole dancers to make space for the band to play, something that Gary would later joke about whilst performing at a sold-out Wembley Arena. Quinn says the show was “horrendous”. Desperate for attention, the band raised £200 to nominate themselves for a Mercury Prize but failed to get shortlisted.