The Taking Back the Cities Tour was a concert tour by Scottish/Northern Irish alternative rock band Snow Patrol. It was launched in support of the group's 2008 album A Hundred Million Suns. The band visited numerous arenas internationally from 2008 throughout 2009. The tour was the collective name of many smaller tours and festivals Snow Patrol played in support of their album. The tour has spanned 9 legs and had over 150 shows. The tour commenced on 26 October 2008 with the band playing a short whistle-stop tour of four capital cities.

The tour has seen the band visit continents like Europe, North America, Australia and Africa. The band has mainly toured as a headlining act, though they have also supported Coldplay and U2 on their respective tours. Tour dates have included a number of summer rock festivals. Often, the band's set on tour has included playing the sixteen-minute-long "The Lightning Strike" in full, though sometimes only the first part is played.

Keyboardist Tom Simpson has said that the band has wanted to tour Asian countries like Singapore. They have not yet done so because they wish to give justice to UK and Ireland, as they feel they've been "neglecting them". He also said that there's a possibility of Snow Patrol touring Asia in 2010.^[1] Lead singer Gary Lightbody has written on the band's website that they'll be returning to headline their own mini-festival at Ward Park next year. He has also revealed that it will be one of few concerts they'll play in the UK and Ireland in 2010, as they intend not to play any festivals and only "special occasions".^[2][3]

The lighting for the tour was done by UK lighting company HSL, which also supplied the crew. HSL previously worked with the band for their tours in 2006 & 2007.^[4] The lighting on the tour is based on the concept of "creative synergy", which employs four visual mediums – lighting, digital lighting, video and movement. The initial ideas came from the band itself, who pitched them to Davy Sherwin, lighting & visuals director. Sherwin had previously worked with the band on their tours in 2006 & 2007.^[4] He came up with a simple arrangement of LED and moving lights, which he felt went well with the music of the album. A metalwork layout of five trusses running upstage/downstage was then added, referring "sun rays" from the album title. The trusses are hinged down at upstage end, so they are freely movable into the performance area. After the design was finalized, Sherwin started to program the show on an ESP Vision visualizer system. He then recorded every song onto a hard drive, and made QuickTime movies of the lighting scenes. These were used by Robin Haddow (live visuals director) and Blue Leach (video director) to program the screen looks, colors and effects, referring to Sherwin's cues. They rehearsed the show for six days at Wembley Arena. In live concerts, Sherwin, Haddow and Leach work together to ensure all four cues (lighting, digital lighting, video and movement) work properly. Sherwin and Haddow operate two WholeHog 3 consoles each, and Rupert Reynolds works the Kinesys system, which produces the effects. The tour is the first ever to use Barco's digital moving lights.^[5][6][7]

Lighting gear

The Snow Patrol concert on the Irish TV Series Other Voices 8 marked the first time optical burst switching technology was used in the transmission of a live concert. Fans were provided a live high-definition streaming of the concert at the Benners Hotel, nearby the venue St. James' Church, among various other locations that were connected to a fiber optic network. The link could also be picked up in Wi-Fi spots on PDAs, laptops and mobile phones. This instance was aimed to demonstrate the new technology, which was invented and developed in Ireland.^[8][9]

Tickets for the Take Back the Cities Tour were initially available to only those who had signed up for the Snow Patrol mailing list on or before 2 October 2008 due to intimate nature of the four shows. Members chosen received an e-mail with a pin-code which was needed to access their tickets.^[10] A week later, a small competition was announced for fans in the US, where fans were required to sign up to enter. For the last two tickets, Xfm teamed up with Snow Patrol. The winners were chosen via a lucky draw. Winners, and a friend travelled with the band on their private plane and got to attend all four shows. They were provided with a video camera to capture the events. The captured footage was later put up exclusively on the band's MySpace. The prize included round-trip airfare to and from the US, transportation and tickets to all four shows. The tickets were priced at £22.50 each.^[11] The Xfm tickets were bagged by Michael Green and his girlfriend Etly. Michael later wrote a review for Xfm describing his experience.^[12] Ticket holders also received artwork at the concert, and instructions on how to download highlights of the shows, which were made available the next day of the concerts.^[13]

Tickets for the UK & Ireland Arena Tour initially went on pre-sale exclusively from the official website from 31 October, 9 am until 1 November midnight. Tickets for general sale started from 7 November, 9 am.^[14] The tickets were priced £30 and £32.50 and a booking fee of £3.00/£3.25 was charged. Tickets could be obtained through services like Ticketmaster and Trinity St. Direct for UK & Ireland customers.^[15] Three pairs of tickets for the show at SECC in Glasgow on 24 February were given away in a last minute competition on the band's website.^[16] In mid-February, Trinity St. Direct ceased trading. Tickets for the shows had not yet fully dispatched. In an official statement, however, the company stated that they would ensure delivery of all outstanding orders.^[17]

On the Australian Promo Tour, Snow Patrol's promoter Frontier Touring Co. employed a strict ticketing policy because of the shortage of tickets for the one-off show at the 1,350 capacity Metro Theatre.^[18] General sale tickets were available through phone, website, or the venue box office one day before the event (18 November) from 9 am and could only be purchased with a credit card.^[18][19] One card holder could only buy two tickets, and the system was designed such that it'd reject attempts of subsequent bookings that bore the same e-mail, phone number or address. The buyer received a confirmation number at the time of booking and not the physical ticket itself. There were other ways of obtaining tickets too. Snow Patrol's official website held a small competition for members where ten pairs of tickets were up for grabs.^[20] Universal Music Australia also ran a competition for fans where they had to buy the album or the single "Take Back the City" from iTunes or JB Hi-Fi and write in telling a reason why they needed to see the band. Winners received tickets for front row and centre.^[21] On 19 November, 12 pm (the day of the concert), wristbands were made available at the venue. To obtain the bands, a photo ID, the credit card used for purchase and the confirmation number were required. The ticket purchaser and a friend had to arrive together with all proof to be wristbanded. As the show was for people in the 18+ year old bracket, a photo ID was necessary to ensure the attendee was old enough. The tickets were priced at $66^[19] and were non-exchangeable nor transferable.^[18] Anyone with a tampered wristband was refused entry.^[18]

The Australian V Festival tickets went on pre-sale for 24 hours, from 19 November, 9 am. Pre-sale for Snow Patrol's official website members began on 25 November, 9 am EST.^[22] General tickets went on sale from 28 November, 9 am.^[23] Tickets for the side-shows went on pre-sale exclusively for official website members from 20 February, noon. General sale began from 23 February, 9 am EST.^[24] Tickets for the free ShockHound concerts on the US Tour were available exclusive through their website from 21 November, 10 am, PST.^[25] Members of Snow Patrol's official website also had the chance to grab the final 20 tickets for each of the shows by answering a question on the website.^[26]

Tickets for the Oxegen Festival initially went on pre-sale exclusively for Oxegen.ie members from 25 February 2009. General sale began from 6 March.^[27] The tickets for T in the Park went for general sale from 27 February. They could officially be obtained through phone or from Ticketmaster. The tickets were priced at £72.50.^[28] Tickets for the UK V Festival went for sale from 6 March, 10 am.^[29] Tickets for the iTunes Festival were not available for general sale.^[30] Tickets could only be won by entering a competition, which could be found on iTunes' Facebook page.^[31] The official website later held a competition as a "final chance" for fans to win tickets to the event.^[32] Tickets for the show at The Rockhal were priced at €35 each (standing).^[33] Tickets for the BBC Children in Need concert could only be won by a ballot. Interested fans were required to register on the Children in Need website, between 16 October 2009, 7 am (BST and 20 October 2009, 12 pm (BST). The people whose names came up were notified by e-mail, and were allotted a maximum of two tickets, each priced between £50–£100.^[34] Since it was a charity concert, all profits from sales of tickets and recordings went towards the organization.^[35] For the Versus Cancer concert, tickets were priced at £32.50 and were available from Ticketmaster, See Tickets and Ticketline. Proceeds from the concert went to local charities in Manchester, with the Christie Hospital being one of beneficiaries.^[36]

Tickets for the European leg of the tour went up for sale from 25 February. They could be obtained from online outlets like Ticketmaster, Oeticket and Eventim.^[37] Additional European shows were announced later. Tickets for the Denmark and Switzerland show went up for sale from 6 March, and those for the France show from 9 March. The prices ranged from €29 to €41.25, depending on the venue.^[38]

Tickets for the shows that will see Snow Patrol support Coldplay were released between 14, 21 and 23 March.^[39] Tickets were priced between $35.00 to $97.50.^[40] For the shows supporting U2, field level tickets were priced at $55, and approximately 10,000 tickets per show costed $30. The price points were $30, $55, and depending on the market, $90–95 and $250.^[41] Tickets for the sideshow could only be won through a competition organized by BNN. Though 15 pairs of tickets were initially announced as prizes, 48 winners were announced, who were notified through e-mail.^[42]

Tickets for the North American tour initially went on pre-sale, exclusively for members of the official website. Tickets for all dates went on general sale on 27 June, except for the dates in Washington, which went on 10 July, and Kansas City, on 11 July.^[43] Tickets for the Nashville show, which was announced earlier, went on pre-sale on 12 June. General sale began the next day, on 13 June and tickets could be purchased through Ticketmaster.^[44] Before the tour began the Myth Nightclub closed. The band issued a statement instructing ticket holders to obtain their new tickets from the new venue's (State Theatre) box-office. These tickets went out on 27 August 2009 at 10 am and were exchanged on a first come, first served basis.^[45] Tickets for the concert in Seattle were priced at $32 (advance) and $35 (day of show). They could also be bought online or by phone.^[46] Tickets for the last concert of the North American Tour, held at The Wiltern LG were priced in the range of $35–$45. For the intimate concert at the Houndstooth Pub, the radio station gave away two passes for the show. Participants had to answer a trivia question to be eligible to win.^[47] KINK FM (of Portland) held a competition for members to win tickets for the live performance, that ended on 10 October.^[48] KNRK radio station of Portland also held a competition where listeners had to answer to a question, and the winner would be sent backstage at Snow Patrol's concert at The Schnitz on 13 October 2009.^[49]

Tickets for the Reworked Winter Tour went on pre-sale on 19 August 2009 at 9 am. General sale began at 9 am on 27 August.^[50] and tickets could be purchased from Gigsandtours (English dates), Ticketmaster (Irish and Scottish dates).^[51] Each purchased ticket will contain a code that will enable the buyer to access a free live download of "The Lightning Strike",^[52] recorded during the band's UK & Ireland Arena Tour of February–March 2009.^[53] 2,000 seated tickets for the Castlebar concert sold out fast, all in 39 minutes, which is a record for the venue.^[54] Tickets were priced at £37, £47 and £57.^[55] Tickets for the other shows were priced in the range of €51.80–€62.50.^[50] Additional tickets for various shows were later released.^[56][57][58]

On 16 October 2009, a competition called the "Up to Now Pub Quiz" was launched on Facebook. Fans were required to create teams of five, and were posed with ten questions, related to the band's entire career, each week. The team with the most correct answers at the end will fly to London to see one of the concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, with a certain part of travel cost paid. The team will be allotted their own private box at the venue, and will get a chance to meet the band afterward. Along the same lines, a Swiss radio station 20 Minuten hosted a similar competition for listeners. They had a pair of tickets for the concert for the Royal Albert Hall concert of 24 November to give away. All flight and hotel accommodation costs were paid for by the radio station.^[59] UK radio station Xfm organized a competition called "Xfm's Snow Patrol Bad Photoshop Challenge", with ten pairs of tickets were up to win. These tickets would enable fans to see the band rehearse in a yet-unnamed location in Brighton at the eve of the Reworked Tour. The challenge was to associate five photoshopped pictures with Snow Patrol song titles. The competition will end on 10 November 2009. A further fifteen pairs of tickets will be given away on air.^[60] Tickets for the intimate acoustic show in London for the promotion of Up to Now could only be obtained via two competitions, one organized on Play.com and the other on the band's official website. Both involved answering a simple question.^[61][62] For the HMV singing and performance, wristbands were available from 9 am on 3 December 2009. One band was assigned to one person, however, it was not necessary to have one to see the band perform. The bands were required only to gain access to the signing.^[63] Tickets for the mini-festival at Ward Park will go on pre-sale on 9 December 2009, and on general sale on the 11th, priced at £44.^[2][64]

As promotion for the then unreleased album, in September 2008, Snow Patrol played an intimate acoustic set, a part of Live Lounge Tour 2008.^[176] Host Jo Whiley joined the band in their London residence to cover the session.^[177] Just before heading to Australia in November 2008 to do a short promo tour, Snow Patrol visited Berlin (where a part of the album was recorded) to play an exclusive one-off show.^[178] The band also played a Live Lounge performance at BBC's Maida Vale Studios during the studio's 75-year celebrations on BBC presenter Fearne Cotton's show. The band's set included cover versions of most famous songs that were recorded in the studio over the years: "Teenage Kicks", "New Sensation", "Ray of Light" and "You Really Got Me".^[179] Three of those were recorded and later broadcast on Greg James' show on BBC Radio 1.^[180] Lightbody felt "honoured" to be playing at the studio, which has seen performances from artists like David Bowie, Jimi Hendrix and The Beatles in the past.^[179] For the promotion of Up to Now, the band played an intimate, acoustic show in Crouch End, London.^[61][181] On 3 December, Lightbody played at HMV Dundrum before signing copies of Up to Now with the band (with the exception of Connolly, who was ill).^{[63][182][183]} The band also played a set with full orchestra for Irish TV series Other Voices 8.^{[184][185][186]} Lightbody has announced that the band will return to play their mini-festival at Ward Park in 2010.^[2][3] It will be the first time the band returns to their hometown since the last Ward park concert in 2007.^[187]

Tour dates

Snow Patrol played at the Music Industry Trusts' Award 2008, held to honor Lucian Grainge, CEO of Universal Music Group. They opened the show by playing "Chasing Cars", standing in for singer Duffy, who was struggling with throat problems. All proceeds from the event, a record breaking sum of £568,593 went to two charities: the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy and the BRIT School.^[188] In October 2009, Snow Patrol played at a headlining set at the second annual fundraiser for ONEXONE, a charitable organization committed to fighting health issues and preserving the lives of children globally.^[189][190] The band played at Children in Need, a BBC charity concert, organized by Take That singer Gary Barlow in November 2009.^[34] Following the event's tradition of every artist duet-ting with another, Barlow had asked the band if they were interested in duet-ting with British singer Cheryl Cole. Quinn later said that it was not something the band would normally do, but agreed to, because it was for charity. Cole rehearsed with the band one night before the show and sang Martha Wainwright's vocal parts on "Set the Fire to the Third Bar".^[191] Additionally, the band played "Chasing Cars" backed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.^[116] In December 2009, the band will play at the fourth edition of Versus Cancer, an annual one-off concert to raise funds for the treatment of cancer.^[192] Snow Patrol will again collaborate with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra on 12 December, with proceeds going towards local cancer charities.^[36][193] Lightbody expressed his happiness on being involved: "Versus Cancer is a fantastic charity and we're delighted to be involved." The concert will be organized by Andy Rourke, past member of The Smiths.^[36]

Lighting & visuals director Davy Sherwin has won one award for his work on the tour.^[194]