Track of the Day: Nathan Connolly - 'Fires'

Together with Scottish songwriter Simon Neil, the Snow Patrol guitarist Nathan Connolly released his new single 'Fires' back on St. Patrick's Day, Friday 17th March. It's the lead single from Connolly's upcoming album, The Strange Order of Things. The 21st of April will see the release of his debut solo album through Third Bar/Virgin Music.

'Fires' is co-written by Simon Neil (Biffy Clyro) who is also featured on the track. Connolly and Neil have been friends since Snow Patrol's beginnings. Both musicians had played together onstage in the past, which is how they got the idea to create their own song.

"Over the years we occasionally mentioned doing something together at some point. Finally, the opportunity came in the form of 'Fires'. He is extraordinary and came at the song from somewhere I don’t think I would or could have," Connolly says.

Listen to Nathan Connolly's new single below:

Nathan Connolly received a lot of recognition for his work, along with Snow Patrol. The band  sold over 17 million recordings and won numerous awards, including an Ivor Novello and a Grammy. After establishing the rock group Little Matador and releasing an album, Connolly started to work on his solo album with producer Rocky O'Reily in 2017.

Simon Neil is a successful singer, guitarist, and songwriter who played in bands like Marmaduke Duke and Biffy Clyro. The bands have shared a number of albums and singles in the past, while Neil has also performed as a solo artist under the name ZZC. Along with releasing a few tracks under his alter ego, Neil worked on his yet-unreleased solo debut album.

Dave Magee, a bandmate from Little Matador, contributed to the writing of 'Fires' as well. Magee's influence was described by Connolly as "an effortless gift for the riff."