Although Snow Patrol has been in existence since 1995, the band’s music began to gain state-side interest only as recently as 2003.

Now, after four albums, two EP’s and seven singles, the Scottish/Irish quintet returns with A Hundred Million Suns.

One of the first things to notice is the emotion behind the style of music present on the album.

The tracks are more symbolic of beginnings rather than the culmination of events and the inevitable end, something that many artists tend to dwell on.B

Even Snow Patrol’s earlier albums reflected this.

This time around, however, lyrics such as “‘Cause the daylight seem to want you just as much as I want you,” repeat in the 11-track album.

The case with uplifting music in the mainstream sense is that it seems to lack the ability to provoke deeper thought.B

A Hundred Million Suns is able to do just that, creating strong visual images of better times just up ahead.

For anyone who is more familiar with the band’s discography, there is good news: the balance between pop and rock is evident.

Songs like “If There’s A Rocket Tie Me To It” and “The Golden Door” provide that synthesizer-altered sound, while songs such as “The Lightning Strike” and “Disaster Button” rely more on the instruments themselves.B

It is clear here that Snow Patrol knows its strengths and weaknesses pretty thoroughly.

Despite all this, there are a few issues.B

While there are no particularly bad songs on A Hundred Million Suns, there are only two or three that truly stand out.

At some point during the first listen-through, one may ask, “Have I heard this song on this album already?”

Another issue is the lack of variety.B

Most songs follow a softer musical style, which is to say they adhere to the philosophy of quiet loudness.

While that may prove to be Snow Patrol’s game-winning formula, it would be nice to see more of a combination of different types of music.

Those things aside, the pop/rock community may want to give A Hundred Million Suns a little attention.B

A set of distinctive vocals, guitar distortion and melodies make the album one that can be listened to more than once.

As long as you do not vehemently oppose repetition, you should be able to find at least a couple of songs to like.