This Isn't Everything You Are

"This Isn't Everything You Are"
Single by Snow Patrol
from the album Fallen Empires
B-side "Plastic Jesus"
Released 14 October 2011
Format Digital download
Recorded 2011
Genre Alternative rock, post-Britpop
Length 4:57
Label Polydor
Writer(s) Gary Lightbody[1]
Snow Patrol singles chronology
"Called Out in the Dark"
(2011)		 "This Isn't Everything You Are"
(2011)		 "New York"
(2011)

"This Isn't Everything You Are" is a song by Northern Irish-Scottish alternative rock group Snow Patrol. The track is the second single from the band's sixth studio album, Fallen Empires, it was released as a digital download on 14 October 2011.

Background and writing

The second single from their sixth album "Fallen Empires" is a lighter-in-the-air anthem that finds them returning to their traditional sound after the electronica elements of their previous single, "Called Out in the Dark."[2] It was released on November 13, 2011.

Gary said to The Sun: "When we'd finished that song, we were going, 'F*** me, this could be a big song'. It's three stories in one — each verse is a different person in my life that was going through a tough time."[3] "Then the chorus is about trying to explain that everything isn't as bad as it might seem."[3]

In another interview, Lightbody told Billboard magazine that he wrote the song "to try to protect" the three people experiencing difficulties, adding that he wanted, "to show them that there were people there for them whenever they needed. Sometimes it's hard to reach out, it's hard to ask for help. It's a recurring theme on the record."[2]

The radio and video edit of the song excludes the lines "Is he worth all this, is it a simple yes? / Cause if you have to think, it's fucked / Feels like you loved him more, than he loved you / And you wish you’d never met."

Critical reception

The song received favorable reviews from music critics. Mike Haydock from BBC Music wrote that it is a "great pop song, full of sparkle and warmth."[4] Simon Gage from Daily Express expressed that "it's anthemic with big guitar breaks".[5] While naming it an "arena rocker", Melissa Maerz from Entertainment Weekly also praised "moments like the gospel-choir chorus of the track", calling it "genuinely affecting."[6] Andy Gill from The Independent also wrote a positive review, saying that "the uplifting title hook, a cross between Coldplay and Elbow, provides the album's most affecting moment."[7] Dave Simpson of The Guardian called it "a doomed love song with a tragic twist."[8]

The song was named the 'Best Track of the Year' by Dan Jenko of FMV Magazine.

Music video

A music video to accompany the release of "This Isn't Everything You Are" was first released onto YouTube on 14 October 2011 at a total length of four minutes and twenty-two seconds. It contains footage filmed in Buenos Aires, Argentina.[2] It was directed by Brett Simon and finds Snow Patrol becoming a house band.[2]

Track listing

Digital download
No. Title Length
1. "This Isn't Everything You Are" (album version) 4:57
UK 2-track Promo CD-single
No. Title Length
1. "This Isn't Everything You Are" (radio edit) 4:02
2. "This Isn't Everything You Are" (instrumental) 4:57
German 2-track Promo CD-single
No. Title Length
1. "This Isn't Everything You Are" (radio edit) 4:02
2. "Plastic Jesus"   3:31

Chart performance

Chart (2011) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[9] 9
Belgium (Ultratip Wallonia)[10] 16
Ireland (IRMA)[11] 18
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[12] 42
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[13] 40
US Adult Alternative Songs (Billboard)[14] 21

Release history

Country Release date Format Label
Netherlands[15] 14 October 2011 Digital download Polydor Records
United Kingdom[16]

References

  1. ↑ "This Isn't Everything You Are | Allmusic". Allmusic. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "This Isn't Everything You Are by Snow Patrol Songfacts". Songfacts. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  3. 1 2 Swift, Jacqui (4 November 2011). "Snow Patrol: We do so much more than just make big anthemic songs | The Sun | Showbiz | Something for the Weekend". The Sun. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  4. ↑ Haydock, Mike (18 March 2012). "BBC - Music - Review of Snow Patrol - Fallen Empires". BBC.
  5. ↑ Gage, Simon (11 November 2011). "Snow Patrol, 'Fallen Empires'; Daily Express". Daily Express.
  6. ↑ Maerz, Melissa (10 November 2011). "Fallen Empires review - Snow Patrol Review - Music Reviews and News - EW.com". Entertainment Weekly.
  7. ↑ Gill, Andy (19 March 2012). "Snow Patrol, 'Fallen Empires'; The Independent". The Independent.
  8. ↑ Simpson, Dave (10 November 2011). "Snow Patrol, 'Fallen Empires'; The Guardian". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
  9. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Snow Patrol – This Isn't Everything You Are" (in Dutch). Ultratip.
  10. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Snow Patrol – This Isn't Everything You Are" (in French). Ultratip.
  11. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 46, 2011". Irish Singles Chart.
  12. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Snow Patrol – This Isn't Everything You Are" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  13. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2011-11-26" UK Singles Chart.
  14. ↑ "Snow Patrol – Chart history" Billboard Adult Alternative Songs for Snow Patrol. Retrieved 23 December 2014.
  15. ↑ This Isn't Everything You Are - Single van Snow Patrol iTunes
  16. ↑ This Isn't Everything You Are - Single van Snow Patrol iTunes
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