Snow Patrol’s upcoming stint at The Odyssey isn’t so much a residency as an occupation.

Other bands have played more nights at the joint (if I remember correctly, Westlife were booked for a series of shows so interminable it took the intervention of an exorcist to eventually rid the place of them) but none have seemed so keen to impose their personality on a venue with none of its own.
Gary Lightbody has been telling anyone who listens that the “Belfast music scene is the most exciting in the world at the moment.” Good to his word, he seems to be using these gigs as an opportunity for some hometown evangelism. In fact, the four nights will be so chock-full of Northern talent, they resemble nothing more than a Hi-Res BelFest showcase, with surround sound and in 3D.
They’ve all appeared on these pages at one time or another (and we assume you know enough about Duke Special and Iain Archer for them to pass unmentioned), but find below a quick refresher on the talent gracing the undercard of the year.
Before Christmas, Lightbody blogged-up his love for The Lowly Knights. The subsequent hit-count lurch on their MySpace site bore testament to the benefits of a ringing celebrity endorsement. Thankfully, the Knights have songs aplenty to back up the hype, and from late summer, their thrilling shift through the low gears has been the big unfolding story round these parts.
Elegant, eloquent and soulful, the twelve-piece are as close to a sure bet that Belfast currently contains. They’ll no doubt use their stint at the Odyssey to size the place up in preparation for their own headline show somewhere down the line.
At times over the last decade, Danny Todd gave the impression of being an eternal student with no intention of ever graduating into the big bad world. A writer, guitarist and producer of some note, Todd has seemed more interested in helping other people realise their potential rather than fulfilling his own. And while the results – with Corrigan, Robyn G Shiels and Alloy Mental – have been impressive, we’ve really been tapping our fingers in anticipation of him striking out on his own.
Last year saw his own band, Cashier No. 9, make the decisive stage-front move – and with a David Holmes produced debut album in the offing (the first taster of which will be the spring-time single, ‘When Jackie Shone’), and a track, ‘Goodbye Friend’ on the forthcoming Belfast film, Cherrybomb – it looks like by the end of 2009, no-one will be in any doubt as to Todd’s class.
Ed Zealous are perhaps the band best suited to the big gesture moves required of the city’s largest multi-purpose barnyard. If the rest of the acts give the distinct impression of knowing their indie from their schmindie, the Zealous boys come from the Chili Peppers/Oasis line of cock-of-the-walk grandstanding. Their debut single, ‘Pretty Face’ was one of last year’s highlights – a brash, swaggering anthem-in-wait, while their experience at Glastonbury means this gig holds little fear.
We both hope and expect to see them acting like they own the place.
Paul Archer’s appearance on the bill is unsurprising for a number of reasons. His old band Disreali Gears are unsung heroes in the Snow Patrol story. Not only did they give the young Bangor boys their first gigs back in the mid-90s, but on breaking up they also very kindly arranged for the free transfer of their drummer, Jonny Quinn. His invite to the Odyssey, however, isn’t just an example of the old boy’s network rewarding its own. Last year Archer released his solo debut album under the Burning Codes heading – and even if he wasn’t already on Lightbody’s Christmas card list, it’s low-lit, hymnal brilliance would surely have sent him searching Archer out.
We have a soft spot for noisily tuneful adolescent three-pieces round these parts. In fact, so keen at one stage were we – it appeared that a law had been passed barring bands with more than six legs from appearing on Belfast stages. The last ten years have, thankfully, seen that all change – but when an outfit come along who seem to have been moulded from the original template, people soon revert to enthusiastic type. There’s little new in General Fiasco’s first single, ‘Something Sometime’ – it’s straight-ahead A-Level power-pop. That doesn’t mean it’s not ace.
Of course, this could all be a Machiavellian ruse by Snow Patrol – gathering the opposition in one place and then getting all Corleone on their asses. Whatever – get along early and show your support. While you still can.

Snow Patrol play The Odyssey on March 19, 20, 21, and 23.