Welcome to the sixth part in our Louden Swain series! If you missed them, you can read part 1, part 2, part 3, Part 4 and Part 5. We’ll be posting a series of articles celebrating the band leading up to the release of their new acoustic album, Splitting the Seams, which will release on October 26.
We asked for input from fans of the band, and had them answer questions. We had a huge turnout, with many fans wanting to share their favorites and their stories. For this installment, fans share their favorite moments from seeing the band in concert!
Shaena (@StartoftheAct): “My favorite moment from the concert would probably be watching them perform ‘Taxi Driver’. It is one of my favorites and I just really loved hearing it live.”
Natasha (@NatashaCole): “My most recent memorable highlight was being at the Tree People show this year and getting to hear acoustic versions of their songs along with their new song for the acoustic album. Also, it was the one show I was able to bring my son to. The guys were super nice and took pictures with us. Seeing my son so happy when he got to talk to Norton about his cats filled my heart with joy.”
Paige (@lightinmychest): “Anytime they play ‘Medicated’ and we break out the kazoos. I love how they are just flabbergasted by how many of us bring a kazoo. Yes, I keep one in my purse.”
Em (@invisible_heir): “In Atlanta, when Rob asked for Mike’s mic to be turned down and someone in the audience yelled ‘NO!’ and then the whole crowd started chanting ‘BORJA! BORJA!'”
Niki (@darlingniki): “My favorite moment was from their concert in Atlanta back in January. On the second night they played ‘Angela’, ‘She Waits’ and ‘Mammas Jam’ back to back and me and my newly made Swain friends were holding hands and crying because it was beautiful and the closeness between everyone in the room was undeniable.”
Dean (@ChucksVessel): “Kazoo solos will always be a favorite.”
April (@AprilVian): “The entire concert is awesome but my favorite moment is probably the crowd participation, all of it the lights, singing along or singing back, the energy is amazing.”
Veronica (@veronica_bum): “I enjoy seeing my friends reactions when they get to hear their favorite songs live and in person. A friend loves the song ‘Like The Heart Goes’ and they played it at the ‘No Time Like The Present’ release party and it made me so happy to look over and see her face light up when they started playing it. I also love being able to hear my favorite songs live as well. I close my eyes, sing along, and enjoy the moment!“
Jennifer (@macd1982): “It would probably be ‘Mamma’s Jam’. They play this as the closing song at SNS and it is always such a party (which is rather odd when you consider the serious subject matter of the song). I can’t help but dance and sing my heart out when they are playing it. Lately, the entire SPN cast in attendance has been joining in on the fun by running up and down the aisles, interacting with fans in the audience, and just generally dancing and having a great time. It’s so much fun.”
Judy (@JayeEmm): “Always ‘Mamma’s Jam’ – it just feels like this celebration of the band and the music and the fans and the night itself – just pure joy.”
Muriel (@housecatsswain): “I only saw the whole band live two times at UKCon and Rockwood. The first thing to cross my mind was hearing them play ‘Mamma’s Jam’. This is such an energetic song and it makes me want to stand up and dance and I am really not a dancer.”
Chris (@Chris_afec): “The first time I saw them live was an SNS at VanCon. I remember thinking how the seated auditorium was kind of a weird set up for a rock concert, and being concerned that maybe that would take away from the show, that it seemed like the atmosphere was more sedate as a result. By halfway through the first song, that fear was well forgotten! It was clear very very quickly that all the hype for a Louden Swain live show was more than justified, it was incredible!”
Sam (@honeybeemish): “I’ve been lucky enough to go to six Saturday Night Specials. By far the moment that sticks out to me is at DCCon 2016 when they sang ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ and I was in Billy’s pit surrounded by internet friends I had gotten close to due to our love for Swain. We sang our hearts out, hugged, and swayed together. And Rob came over and gave hugs, which is always a highlight.”
Brittany (@tasteofmyhominy): “I saw them perform at Eddie’s Attic in Decatur, GA at the beginning of the year. They played three shows in two days like the true rockstars they are and didn’t repeat a single song from their catalog. My favorite moment was during ‘Medicated’, without needing any prompting from the band, the audience came in at the appropriate time with the strongest, unified kazooing I have ever heard. The look of pure joy on the band’s faces in that moment was the most precious thing I’ve ever seen.”
Kim (@KimSaysSmile): “DC 2017 SNS will always be my favorite concert memory. I have met many friends because of Swain and there were so many of us at this particular con. Our group made our own dance area in the back of the room and it was magic. Just being there with friends that love the band as much as you…. Being there together to dance and sing and just live our lives. It was magic. And the Rob saw us and raced back to us at one point and we all stood in a circle and sang. It is something I will never forget.”
Stacy (@LoveandSwain): “This changes a lot, but right now the one that comes to mind is the ‘No Time Like the Present’ release party. Everything that night was just amazing (no pun intended). Getting to hear songs we’ve been waiting months for, with friends right beside me… that’s a moment I will never forget. There was so much love and happiness in that room.”
Elise (@broadwayswain): “At Phoenix SNS, sweaty Rob hugged me for the first time. Before that SNS, I told him in his autos that he’s always missed me by one person to receive a hug from him at the show. At Pascon SNS and Burcon SNS it happened, and I was kinda bummed. He said he’ll try tonight and even gave me a hug at autos just in case. Well, during ‘Medicated’, he fulfilled my wish of a sweaty hug from him and even kissed me on the cheek. He even said into the mic ‘I’m hugging you’ like he had to make it known to everyone in that room he was gonna do it. Rob messes with me a lot, but I love him for that.”
Amanda (@BandagedLetdown): “My favorite moment from seeing the guys are the times when one of them makes eye contact with a fan and seeing that fan absolutely light-up with happiness, or when Rob runs down the isles high-fiving everyone.”
Michelle (@lydrewsmom): “I’ve been to many, many concerts over the years but none have ever been quite like a Louden Swain concert. The energy in the room feels like a vibration running over a wire, it’s palpable. I’ve been to two SNS performances and my favorite moment for each show was the first strum of Rob’s guitar. It’s like he plucks at the entire room. It truly is magical.”
Sarah (@SharksandSwain): “It’s a tie between how excited Rob gets during the ‘yeah yeah how’ part of ‘This is How’ – he gets so into it and it’s incredibly endearing and impossible to not want to sing along with him…and the time they played ‘Here Come The Snakes’ in NYC. All of us in the crowd absolutely lost our minds and the energy and atmosphere of that performance is something I don’t think I’ll ever experience again. It was just effing phenomenal. I really can’t accurately put that moment into words.”
Holly (@AccioAwesome): “My friend Emily used to make silly merchandise featuring different members of the band. In 2014 she had made beanies with a variety of Rob Benedict aphorisms on them. Most of us in the front row of the audience were wearing them, but it took several songs for Rob to actually notice. When he did, he stopped in the middle of a song to have a giggle fit and read them all.”
Lori (@SPNZookeeper): “I have a few favourite moments from concerts. One of them being hearing my favourite song, ‘Help You’ live for the first time at my first US convention. Rob had told me the day earlier they were playing it for me and I couldn’t believe it, it was just… incredible. Apart from hearing my favourite song live, my other favourite moments are the moments when I am surrounded by friends, when we’re all singing and shouting or swaying and dancing; we’re all truly happy in those moments, and we get to share them together; All because of Louden Swain.”
Shannon (@reelnerdy): “When they performed at Eddie’s Attic in Jan 2018 they performed ‘Rock Song’ during the Tuesday night show. How often can you sing along with a band about partying on a Tuesday night while you are partying with them on a Tuesday night?”
Emily (@fiveafterseven): “DC SNS dance party. The whole crowd singing along to the rarely played songs at Eddie’s Attic this past January. The ‘This Is How’ dance. The reactions to the light up messages we’ve put together over the years. Watching friends experience their favourite songs live. The finale of the Toronto 2014 concert- I’ve never experienced something quite that raw and real before or since.”
Sam (@SwainerSam): “It was a small concert they did at The Study and they were singing ‘This Is How’, Rob likes to sing my favorite lyrics to me if he sees me in the crowd which is always amazing but this time he looked at me while singing ‘I find my voice and sing it from the rooftops’ as he handed me the pick he was using. I keep that pick around my neck as a reminder to myself from Rob to never stop singing from the rooftops.”
Jess (@JessHawden): “Favourite moment is the final song of the SNS at the Hawaii convention. There was just something so beautiful about the concert being out under the starlit sky with the sound of the ocean waves rippling in the background as everyone came together on stage to sing ‘Free Fallin’ together. Was the perfect end to a magical evening.”
Tiffany (@TiffanyShope1): “Like many, my first experience was seeing them play at a convention. When they played Wave at the Seattle SNS; I was done for and I knew that I HAD to see them again. The entire band just gets into the song and I feel lucky to be able to see it performed live.”
Tiffany (@TiffIsWayward): “The second year they were in Minneapolis for the convention, they played Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’ as a tribute to the artist after he had died earlier that year. The song had become their closing number that year, but Rob said before they started to play that all those other performances had just been ‘practice’ because playing it in Prince’s hometown was the real thing. We all broke out our purple glow sticks (knowing they’d be playing the song) and the whole room was awash in a purple glow. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the looks on everyone’s faces from on stage.”
Kari (@kariface27): “My favorite video of them is when they sang ‘Purple Rain’ with the cast of SPN at a convention. The emotion in that room was palpable through the screen.”
Finn (@againsthewave_): “The Eddie’s Attic shows in January this year were incredible. No repeats over 3 shows! I heard so many of my favorites.”
Gisselle (@lopezado8696): “I have gone to three of Louden Swain’s Saturday Night Special performances during conventions, and I’ve had a blast at every single one. Personally, I love it when they’re playing their final song of the night, and the entire cast and ensemble of performers for the night all run out, dance, and engage with the audience. Not only do we see everyone come out, but we also get re-energized by Louden Swain’s performance, even though it’s practically the middle of the night after a long convention day; they do a fantastic job up keeping up the hype and giving us a great time, and you can see that they have so much fun!”
Karyl (@karylannegeary): “My favorite performance was in Chicago when they sang ‘Hallelujah’ with Jason Manns. There was a moment when they covered their mics and let the crowd sing the chorus. I don’t have the words to explain how magical that moment was, but I still have chills thinking about it. Right then, we were all a part of something. There wasn’t a line between band and audience–we were connected and we made something really special.”
Sara (@altsunthinkable): “My favourite moment was surprising the band with our lighted signs for Amazing at NJCon 2016.”
Jenna (@sushiswain): “At PittCon 2016, Rob was having a little technical difficulty with his mic. He couldn’t get it to work, so he requested that everyone be as quiet as possible. You could have heard a pin drop in that airplane hangar of a room as Rob proceeded to play ‘Fare Thee Well’ entirely off-mic. It was my first time hearing him perform it live and nothing has topped it since.”
Emma (@simplyreflected): “I’ve only seen Louden Swain during SNS at SPN Creation Con in Montreal, but my favourite moments were watching them play ‘The Big One’ as I absolutely love that song and watching the crowds reaction to ‘She Waits’ with the glow sticks as well as Rob’s reaction to the crowd. It was such a beautiful moment for such an emotional and fantastic song.”
Brandy (@horrorlovingirl): “I was lucky enough to be in Denver a couple of weeks ago. I have never seen an SNS (recorded or live) that felt like more of a journey than that night. The set list with older songs, the energy that radiated from the stage, the pure emotion that filled the room…I have never experienced anything like it. It’s indescribable. I think that the moment that really hit me was during ‘Amazing’ when Rob squatted down with his guitar across his legs and just looked out over the audience. He was eye level with all of the lights and the near disbelief on his face was incredible. It was beautiful.”
Angélique (@Angie_Voyage): “The moment between ‘She Waits’ and ‘Mamma’s Jam’ – the mood of the whole room switches from a bit-of-sad-and-lots-of-feels to hell-yeah-lets-have-some-fun. It’s amazing all the energy they give to us.”
Maranda (@maranda_martin): “I’ve seen them a few times live and each time is memorable for one thing or another. I always love how Billy reacts to us singing to him. Like he’s surprised we know the words to their songs. It’s adorable.”
MaryJane (@12TimeTraveler ): “I mean…’She Waits’ is always so incredibly powerful. But personally I love watching Billy. He’s just so into it 100% of the time. I always try to stand on his side of the stage at the cons. I love when he turns to us and gives us that rock-star look.”
Scout (@Scoutstiel): “A now-friend of mine was selling a seat next to her’s at a Jacksonville convention, and I bought it. I sat next to her during the SNS, and after ‘She Waits’ she turned to me, crying, and baffled she said, ‘Wow, that was really sad.’ She’d never seen them perform before. That’s always stuck with me. There’s also nothing about ‘Medicated’ live that I don’t love. Y’know, it’s just a big room full of happy bees, and I enjoy trying to justify the pre-kazooing to Rob Benedict while he tries to make it stop. Let them tune, dangit!”
Mary (@pare6386): “I would say being a part of the pink wave at Saturday Night Special during ‘She Waits’ because it is such a raw emotional song. The performance was incredible and I don’t think I will ever forget it.”
Lindsey (@lindseyiam): “I’ve only seen Louden Swain perform live twice so far. As I’m sure many others will agree, the audience raising their lights for ‘She Waits’ is always an absolutely incredible moment. The emotion in the room becomes palpable and it’s like everyone is in sync for those few minutes of time. Also, I LOVE watching how incredibly psyched and excited all four of the guys always seem during their shows. They’ve been doing this for SO many years and yet they still give it 110% every single time.”
Vera (@raths_kitten): “Much as I hate Rob getting sad, holding up the lights during ‘She Waits’ had felt the most special at Creation’s UK con, because the girl sitting next to me had given me a light and we bonded. I really love the crowd kazoo playing for ‘Medicated’ as well though. So, I guess the full crowd bonding experiences are what I love best.”
Kelli (@klairermusic1): “My favorite moment was during ‘She Waits.’ Most of the people sitting around me had not heard of Swain until they got to the concert so they didn’t understand why I was handing out lights to them. However, when ‘She Waits’ was played they followed along and put their lights up as well. The reflections of the lights around the room was beautiful. Rob’s emotion of the song mixed with the beauty around me had me in tears the entire time! Scout actually did a piece based off of that night’s performance of the song. I have it in multiple types of print because it is a great reminder of that night.”
Aileen (@fandomfreak221b): “‘She Waits’ from this year’s Vegas convention. I was going through some personal stuff with my dad being away from home for long periods of time due to work. I hadn’t seen him in a long while by the time the convention came around and the song just hit me really hard. Hearing it live was surprisingly really comforting and brought me to tears. It really meant a lot.”
Erika (@soliloquywriter): “Probably when Rob sang to me at The Study in Hollywood. It was my first time truly being front row, there was a show at The Study previously, but Stephen wasn’t there, and a row of people with VIP had filed into the front row, so this show I was right there with no one between me and the band, and that alone felt pretty amazing. I took photos during most of the show, but during ‘She Waits’ I always put my camera down, and I of course sing along because I can identify with the song on a personal level. My son’s dad walked out on us too, and never once looked back, still to this day. So when Rob sang part of the song to me, and at my heart hands, made heart hands back to me, it was a special moment that I will cherish always. I found the moment in someone’s video that they posted of the show, and was able to print out a screen shot of Rob giving me heart hands to keep in my scrapbook, so big thanks to the anonymous person out there that caught the moment on video!”
Emma (@EmmaV421): “The first time I ever saw Rob perform ‘She Waits’ live. It was at my first Supernatural convention and it blew me away how emotional he got and how comfortable he was to do it. That was when I truly understood why they called this the SPN Family.”
Lynette (@LynetteParki): “I’m sure this is a fairly common answer as it is such a magical moment at almost every SNS but I loved ‘She Waits’. I saw Swain live for the first time at Birmingham for SPNUK. When they started playing one amazing fan had arranged for everyone to have finger lights and the whole room lit up. There was a glass wall down one side of the convention room and Rob commented that it looked like the lights went on forever. I think what made it so special was that they know that the fans in the US and Canada understand the significance and sentiment behind the song because they perform so much over there. From what Rob said after the song, I think it truly surprised him that he has that same love and support worldwide.”
