Snow Patrol "Like The Village People"

Snow Patrol frontman Gary Lightbody has taken two years to reply to Manic Street Preachers bassist Nicky Wire describing his group as "the most boring band in Britain."

(This reminds us of that Seinfeld episode where George Costanza came up with the "jerk store" comeback days after he was insulted by his co-workers.)

Wire called Snow Patrol "deplorable" two years ago and said he'd be nowhere near them when the two bands played Britain's V Festivals in 2007.

"They're probably the biggest band in Britain, but they're also the most hated," Wire is quoted as saying in a 2007 Contact Music article.

"It's a weird dichotomy for them. They are utterly deplorable, there is something unredeemingly, utterly shit about them, you just cannot put one's finger on.

"It's a desperate form of music, the endless repeated lines, over and over, the same drab fucking little thing going on and on and on.

"They're the great losers turned into the great winners, that's their redemption."

Lightbody disagrees, of course.

"To be the most hated, you have to be the most loved, too," he told Scotland's Daily Record newspaper.

"Nicky Wire has earned the right to say whatever he wants; he's a rock God, so more power to him.

"[Snow Patrol] only seem dull on the surface. Jonny [Quinn, drummer] fights fires. Tom [Simpson, keyboardist] toils shirtless on construction sites, Paul [Wilson, bassist] is in the Navy Reserve. Nathan [Connolly, guitarist] is a volunteer policeman and I explore my Cherokee ancestry.

"We're like the Village People, only slightly less gay.

Lightbody went on to say people can insult his band as much as they want.

"Nothing will offend me. It's all been said. And you can't give us more than two middle fingers."

Lightbody also told the newspaper he doesn't understand why Snow Patrol are continually compared to Coldplay.

Interestingly enough, Snow Patrol will open for Coldplay on several of their North American dates and have also been tapped as U2's opening act on their North American tour. You can see them here:

April 1 Adelaide, Australia @ Entertainment Centre
April 2 Melbourne, Australia @ Palais Theatre
April 4 Melbourne, Australia @ Melbourne Showgrounds (V Festival)
April 5 Perth, Australia @ Claremont Showgrounds (V Festival)
April 10 Johannesburg, South Africa @ Coke Zero Festival
April 13 Cape Town, South Africa @ Coke Zero Festival
May 18 Stockholm, Sweden @ Cirkus
May 19 Copenhagen, Denmark @ Vega
May 21 Hamburg, Germany @ Sporthalle Hamburg
May 22 Frankfurt, Germany @ Jahrhunderthalle Frankfurt
May 23 Berlin, Germany @ Columbiahalle
May 24 Munich, Germany @ Zenith
May 26 Vienna, Austria @ Gasometer
May 28 Zurich, Switzerland @ Winterthur Eishalle
May 30 Dusseldorf, Germany @ Philips-Halle
May 31 Stuttgart, Germany @ Porsche-Arena
June 1 Landgraaf, Netherlands @ Pinkpop Festival
June 2 Paris, France @ Elysee Montmartre
June 5 Indianapolis, IN @ Verizon Wireless Music Center w/Coldplay
June 6 Nashville, TN @ Sommet Center w/Coldplay
June 9 New Orleans, LA @ New Orleans Arena w/Coldplay
June 10 San Antonio, TX @ AT&T Center w/Coldplay
June 12 Des Moines, IA @ Wells Fargo Arena at The Iowa Events Center w/Coldplay
June 13 Omaha, NE @ Qwest Center Omaha w/Coldplay
June 15 Winnipeg, MB @ MTS Centre w/Coldplay
June 17 Calgary, AB @ Pengrowth Saddledome w/Coldplay
June 18 Edmonton, AB @ Rexall Place w/Coldplay
June 20-21 Vancouver, BC @ General Motors Place w/Coldplay
June 30, July 2 Barcelona, Spain @ Nou Camp w/U2
July 7-8 Milan, Italy @ San Siro w/U2
July 10 Dublin, Ireland @ Punchestown Racecourse (Oxegen Festival)
July 12 Balado, Scotland @ T In The Park Festival
July 31-Aug. 1 Gothenburg, Sweden @ Ullevi Arena w/U2
Aug. 6 Chorzow, Poland @ Slaski Stadium w/U2
Aug. 10 Zagreb, Croatia @ Maksimir Stadium w/U2
Aug. 22 Weston Park, England @ V Festival
Aug. 23 Chelmsford, England @ V Festival
Sept. 12 Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field w/U2
Sept. 16 Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre w/U2
Sept. 20 Boston, MA @ Gillette Stadium w/U2