Tired Pony: What if R.E.M. and Snow Patrol had a baby?

When I saw that there was a YouTube video that was REM meets Snow Patrol, I had to click on the link.  It led me to Tired Pony a supergroup if ever there was one, comprised of the lead singer of Snow Patrol, Gary Lightbody, fellow bandmate Iain Archer, REM's guitarist Peter Buck, uber producer Jacknife Lee, Scott McCaughey of the Young Fresh Fellows (who's been playing with REM forever), and a bunch of other wickedly talented people.

Now, I know I should have kept expectations low.  While Reese's has shown us that putting two great things together can make an even better thing, other collaborations have been less successful (Ebony and Ivory, anyone?).  But from the first note, I realized that this was a dream grouping.  This is a band who cares about music.  Their music is lush, it's deep, it's evocative.  It's the musical equivalent of an all day spa visit followed by fifteen minutes with the Dalai Lama.  You just feel better having experienced it.
  
Their debut album is called "The Place We Ran From" and it's available here. 
Here are three videos to give you a taste for what's on the album.

Pieces

It's all there, the mystery, the sensuality, the lyrical beauty. Close your eyes, you'll feel like you're floating.

Dead American Writers

I cannot express how amazing it is to listen to this and realize it's like finding a missing puzzle piece.  This for me is the quintessential perfect music.  Part pop, part folk, part rock.  It's moody, sexy, chimerical.  I need to go find my old Snow Patrol CD and figure out why I paid it so little attention.

I am a Landslide


This song has a definite Neil Young sound to it.  Any country music fan who may have stumbled onto this post, and continued down this far, you've been rewarded.  For a group that is a conglomeration of an Irish and an American rock band, this song would fit in quite well in both the folk and country genres.  I have to admit it, I actually love a song with a prominent banjo in it.  That's how amazing this group is, they've brainwashed me.

Here's a link to their concert in London where they were joined by some special guests. Enjoy. http://www.ifc.com/news/2010/10/exclusive-premiere-tired-pony.php