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''Fallen Empires'' is the sixth studio album by Northern Irish-Scottish rock band Snow Patrol. The album was released on 11 November 2011 (10 January 2012 in North America). The album became the first to feature future member
Johnny McDaid John McDaid (born 24 July 1976) is a singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer from Northern Ireland. He is a member of the band Snow Patrol and has written songs with other artists including Ed Sheeran, P!nk, and Robbie Williams. Earl ...
, who was credited as guest musician and songwriter in the album liner notes, and would officially join the band following the tour. It is also the last album to feature keyboardist Tom Simpson, who would later depart the band in 2013. American singer
Lissie Elisabeth Corrin Maurus (born November 21, 1982), known as Lissie, is an American singer-songwriter. She released her debut EP, "Why You Runnin'", in November 2009. Her debut album, ''Catching a Tiger'', was released in June 2010. Her second stu ...
provided additional vocals for six songs on the album ("I'll Never Let Go", "The Weight of Love", "The Garden Rules", "Fallen Empires", "Berlin", and "Those Distant Bells").


Background and development

When asked about the writing process for the album, Gary Lightbody commented by saying "It's the longest album we've ever made by far but also the best. We took our time and I also had some bouts of writer's block. It's the first time it's happened for such a long time. I've had days when I haven't been able to write. Since 2009, I've gone through three writer's blocks but I'm glad because the results are great afterwards. They probably made me write better songs." Snow Patrol planned a "Fallen Empires tour" in 2012 with the first date being at the O2 in Dublin. The song "New York" can be heard at the end of " Suddenly" ( Season 8 Episode 10) of '' Grey's Anatomy''. The song is also played in " After School Special" ( Season 4 Episode 10) of '' The Vampire Diaries''.


Singles

* " Called Out in the Dark" was released as the first single from the album on 2 September 2011 in the UK as an EP. A video was released for the song before its release date on 17 August 2011. * " This Isn't Everything You Are" was announced as the second single from the album on Snow Patrol's official site. It was released on 14 October 2011. * " New York" was the third single from the album released in America on 20 December 2011. * " In the End" was released as the fourth single on 13 February. * " Lifening" was the fifth single and was released on 5 July.


Reception


Critical reception

''Fallen Empires'' received mixed reviews from critics. According to the website
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, which assigns a weighted mean rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average review score of 58/100, based on 25 reviews, which indicates "mixed or average reviews". James Christopher Monger wrote a favorable review for
Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
, stating that the album "establishes an expansive vista of sound early on, bathing fairly simple melodies in waves of fastidious loops and sparse percussion." Mike Haydock wrote a positive review for BBC Music, analysing that "Best of all are the moments when Snow Patrol blend the two approaches together, combining their own aesthetic with an ''
Achtung Baby ''Achtung Baby'' () is the seventh studio album by Irish rock music, rock band U2. It was produced by Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, and was released on 18 November 1991 on Island Records. After criticism of their 1988 release ''Rattle and Hum'', ...
'' adoration." ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cult ...
''s Melissa Maerz wrote that "For all the sentiment, it's the simplest stuff that rings true." ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
s Nate Chinen praised the songwriting, saying that "What makes this all feel reasonably unforced is the abiding earnestness in the songwriting." '' The A.V. Club'' wrote that the album "it's comforting at worst and occasionally fantastic." Dave Simpson wrote an average review, saying that "Although the variation in styles doesn't make for the most cohesive album, the default mood is still downbeat but anthemic--songs for couples to cling tightly to one another while raising mobiles in the air." While ''
Now Magazine ''Now'' (styled as ''NOW''), also known as ''NOW Magazine'' is an online publication based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Throughout most of its existence, ''Now'' was a free alternative weekly newspaper. Physical publication of ''Now'' was suspen ...
'' found out that "In the first few songs they stretch themselves creatively and come up with promising results, but halfway through it's back to overwrought ballads and middle-of-the-road mid-tempo rock songs." A mixed review came from ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its co ...
''s Stacey Anderson, who wrote that "Snow Patrol fall back to the blandly inoffensive safe zone--though at least they sound a little brighter."
Pitchfork Media ''Pitchfork'' (formerly ''Pitchfork Media'') is an American online music publication (currently owned by Condé Nast) that was launched in 1995 by writer Ryan Schreiber as an independent music blog. Schreiber started Pitchfork while working ...
thought that "the results are goofy." ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' criticized the album for "stick ngtoo rigidly to the formula."


Commercial performance

In 2011, ''Fallen Empires'' sold 269,000 copies in the UK. The album debuted at number five on the US ''Billboard'' 200 chart, selling 31,000 copies. It became the band's highest debut on the ''Billboard'' chart and the second album to reach the top-ten.


Track listing

There was also a special digipak version of the album showing highlights of the band playing live at the Royal Albert Hall on 25 November 2009 on their 'Reworked' tour. The track listing is as follows: First half highlights: Second half highlights:


Personnel

Snow Patrol * Gary Lightbody – vocals, guitar, backing vocals *
Nathan Connolly Nathan Connolly (born 20 January 1981) is a Northern Irish musician, who is best known as the lead guitarist and backing vocalist for alternative rock band Snow Patrol. Early life Connolly, who was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland, sang fo ...
 – guitar, backing vocals * Paul Wilson – bass guitar, backing vocals * Jonny Quinn – drums, percussion * Tom Simpson – keyboards, samples *
Johnny McDaid John McDaid (born 24 July 1976) is a singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer from Northern Ireland. He is a member of the band Snow Patrol and has written songs with other artists including Ed Sheeran, P!nk, and Robbie Williams. Earl ...
 - piano, guitar Other personnel * James "Big Jim" Anderson – tuba * Stephen Wick – tuba * John Barclay – trumpet * Guy Barker – trumpet * Pat White – trumpet * Richard Bayliss – horns * Evgeny Chebykin – horns * Jocelyn Lightfoot – horns * Timothy Brown – horns * Kira Doherty – horns * Philip Eastop – horns * Avshalom Caspi – brass arrangement * Ian Fasham – bass trombone * David A. Stewart – bass trombone * Dan Jenkins – trombone * Colin Sheen – trombone * Sam Bell – engineer, editing * Tom McFall – engineer * Philip Rose – engineer * Tilmann Ilse – assistant engineer * Karen Kelleher – assistant engineer * Owen Lewis – assistant engineer * James Jarvis – choir director * John Ross – photography * John C.F. Davis – mastering * Hilary Skewes – contractor * Cenzo Townshend – mixing * Neil Comber – mixing assistant * Dave Emery – mixing assistant * Jacknife Lee – guitar, keyboards, programming, producer, glass harmonica, mixing


Charts and certifications


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


References

{{Authority control 2011 albums Fiction Records albums Interscope Records albums Snow Patrol albums Albums produced by Jacknife Lee