Chasing The Chimera Across North America

Stop #1: Raleigh, North Carolina

UNSEEN team member: Lauren

Lauren's thoughts:

I don’t think anything could replace the anticipation and emotions leading up to this show; it was opening night after all. So much unknown—what songs will make it? What will the set look like? What merch am I going to empty my pockets for, even though there wasn’t an inch to spare in my suitcase? The answer was all of it. 

My favorite memory from this show was once we had finally entered the venue for soundcheck. We had been outside for hours at that point and it was well below freezing. Holden was taking requests for soundcheck and we pleaded for something to dance to so we could warm up, and he was quick to suggest 'Beach House'. All it took was the first few seconds of the song to play and we were instantly off our feet, and by the end of the song, we were taking off layers, we had finally warmed up, and just for a moment, that venue was ours.

Stop #2: Richmond, Virginia

UNSEEN team member: Lauren

Lauren's favorite song(s) on the setlist: "'Sorry I Am'+ 'Doll House', where we would call our friends who couldn’t make it and FaceTime so they could experience the song with us."

Stop #3: Washington, D.C., night one

UNSEEN team members: Lauren & Mary

Lauren's favorite soundcheck: "D.C. night one! During this soundcheck, he played 'Chastain', 'Theory of Emotion', 'Let’s Pretend', 'Lamplight', and 'Eagle In My Nest'. Some of my absolute favorites and it was my first time hearing 'Lamplight' live! I hadn’t heard 'Let’s Pretend' since 2021, so that was super special."

Mary's thoughts:

This was the first concert where I was actually standing against the barricade, and I can still feel the drop in my stomach as the lights went down and the screams from the crowd reverberated from my ears down to the rumbling beneath our feet. It was pure adrenaline illuminating everyone in the venue, but I felt it especially strong standing beside my friends, a sweeping wave of joy crashing into us as we held on together and watched our favorite artist walk out on stage.

But, a specific memory that hangs in the air whenever I reminisce on this night is when Holden began to sing 'How To Live', the lead single off Chasing The Chimera. Lauren turned to me and mused, 'Lolla throwback!' in a singsong voice. I was immediately doused with ice cold nostalgia, wide awake and ravenous for a moment that happened only five months earlier, when we saw him debut that same song live for the very first time at Lollapalooza. The album cycle between now and then just hammered home the investment I held in this community, fandom, and created family.

Stop #4: Washington, D.C., night two

UNSEEN team member: Lauren

Stop #5: Brooklyn, New York, night one

UNSEEN team members: Lauren, Miri, & Mary

Mary's thoughts:

Brooklyn's first night holds way too many special moments to only choose one! This was, undoubtedly, my favorite show of the tour. The atmosphere in the venue was buzzing with electricity as my friends and I danced towards the stage with Harry Styles's just-released 'Aperture' playing on the speakers, gaping up at the beautiful ceiling and intricate designs of the Brooklyn Paramount, where it was impossible to keep my eyes from wandering to all the gorgeous details around the venue. This moment felt like lightning in a bottle, and this was before the concert had even begun.

The show itself held a plethora of highlights: enthusiastically losing myself in the crowd during 'Beach House' by jumping like a maniac and screaming away all previous 'menty-b’s,' spotting Samia behind the curtain and clutching a hand over my mouth in disbelief as she walked out on stage while the beginning notes of 'Pool' trickled over the crowd like an ethereal cloud, seeing Miri's bewildered and flabbergasted reaction to the sewing machine during 'Damn' and feeling incredulously joyful to witness two of my friend's greatest joys crashing together unexpectedly, and getting knocked into the inner circle for the 'Perfume' pit, unable to grasp how I got so lucky. This entire concert was like a dream unraveling in front of my eyes, stitching itself together into a perfect, powerful, incredible night.

Lauren's favorite venue: "Brooklyn Paramount. Hands down, the most gorgeous venue I’ve ever been to."

Stop #6: Brooklyn, New York, night two

UNSEEN team members: Lauren, Miri, & Mary

Mary's thoughts:

For Brooklyn night two, we stayed in the back of the venue, opting to see the entire stage and freely dance without the confinement of a tight crowd.

One of my favorite parts, though? The fact that this was a show I hadn't originally planned on attending, but was a last-minute addition as I decided to stay in New York an extra night, and win a free ticket by being one of the first 10 people to arrive at Catbird Jewelry early that morning for a Meet-and-Greet with Holden. That morning was freezing, I was utterly exhausted, and I tried to eat a messy breakfast bagel that got all over my gloves and scarf, but it was so worth it when I showed up to Will Call that night and was given an envelope with my name on it and a physical ticket inside.

I am so happy I didn't skip this show. Otherwise, I would've missed our collective shrieking when Holden covered 'Steal My Girl', his manager Jon saying a quick hello when noticing us grouped together in the back (he's the kindest), and our friend Anabelle performing her very first 'Perfume' pit, surrounded by our phone’s flashlights and overwhelming laughter.

Stop #7: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

UNSEEN team members: Lauren, Miri, & Mary

Miri's thoughts:

I didn’t think I’d cry during soundcheck; we were tired, still wrapped in puffers and scarves, shivering with cold and anticipation. We rolled our eyes to one another as Holden announced he’d be starting the set with the most reliable tearjerker on his discography. The first chords of 'To Philly' emanated from his familiar yellow guitar and the tensions that had built up — negative temperatures outside, months spent missing the people I was currently with — dissolved into tears.

Lauren's favorite crowd: "This has to be a tie between Philly and Austin. Such great energy and SO LOUD."

Stop #8: Toronto, Canada

UNSEEN team member: Miri

Miri's thoughts:

The four of us held our own little mosh pit in the back amidst a quieter crowd. Sweaty and half blind from the lights, hair in mouths and hands in hands, we faced each other instead of the stage and yelled the words to 'Beach House' at the top of our lungs, gleeful and off-key. 

Stop #9: Royal Oak, Michigan

UNSEEN team member: Miri

Miri's thoughts:

Continuing our in-jokes from the first few shows of tour, singing the ad-libs and harmonies as loud as we could, a sort of torch to bear aloft in honor of our friends who weren’t in attendance. A chorus of soup and slide whistles and teaching a man to fish. Three of us held up the same little piece of someone’s fan project, waving phone flashlights and giggling, in spite of the melancholy song, when our fingers slipped off the paper.

Stop #10: Chicago, Illinois

UNSEEN team member: Miri

Miri's thoughts:

After the show, we huddled up with some friends we hadn’t seen since last summer and jumped up and down to keep our blood flowing. Someone started singing a Lorde song and eventually we all joined in and became a mildly dissonant, out-of-breath acapella circle. Of course, getting to talk to Holden was part of the fun, but that night I went to sleep with 'Green Light' on loop in my head. 

Stop #11: Austin, Texas

UNSEEN team member: Lauren

Lauren's thoughts:

Austin was by far the most special show for me. I spent the day with friends and got to be barricade with them when it came time for the show. The energy at this show was great. It was the first and only outdoor venue for the tour and the weather was perfect. About halfway through the show, Holden began talking to the crowd about tour and told them that there was a special guest, someone who was really important to him. I remember looking over at my friends, wondering who it might be. Before I could come up with an answer, I hear, 'Lauren, could you come on stage for me?'

Mentally, I was frozen. Physically, I was being lifted over the barricade and onto the stage. He spent the next few moments saying some really nice things about me and the community we have built. Just as I had time to question why I was up there, he says, 'I think someone else has something they wanted to say to you.' I look over to the barricade and see my boyfriend climbing over. He came onto the stage and before I knew it, he was proposing, of course I said yes. 

After I got back to my spot in the crowd, Holden honored us by playing 'Laid Down My Arms' acoustically as the surprise song. And each night during 'Damn,' Holden embroiders something for a fan—this night I received one that said 'L+N 4EVER.' The perfect memento for a perfect night. 

Stop #12: Dallas, Texas

UNSEEN team member: Lauren

Stop #13: Atlanta, Georgia

UNSEEN team member: Lauren

Stop #14: New Haven, Connecticut

UNSEEN team members: Lauren, Miri, & Mary

Mary's thoughts:

New Haven was so special because it was the last show, and we all traveled together on the same trains and shared adjoining hotel rooms. But my favorite moment was giving Holden a bracelet during the VIP soundcheck. It was the first friendship bracelet I had ever made (but I like to remind everyone that I promise I had friends, I was just a mooch collecting bracelets), so I was already mightily attached to it for that reason alone, but I’m glad I got to give him the very first-edition bracelet I’d ever created. And he seemed to like the charms, so I hope he enjoys it for a while. Also, Miri actually had to be the one to get his attention, so I could pass it to him, so the friendship bracelet operation was a real friendship effort.

All in all, we experienced so many memories together, proving that concert friendships go beyond the concert itself and delve into real-life moments reflected beneath a song’s surface and lyrics. We helped each other wake up at 6 AM, searched for basement bathrooms, nearly broke our teeth on a cookie that fell apart like chalk, laughed so hard we lost our breath, cried and ate pizza on a hotel room floor, and designed Italian charm bracelets together to commemorate the tour. We even got stuck on the subway for about 45 minutes, but we still managed to laugh about it and turn it into another memorable moment.

Now, we’re all just theorizing about the next Del Water Gap tour and excitedly scheming potential travel plans. Hey Holden, if you’re reading this, we’re available to join your touring crew as official UNSEEN correspondents!

Thank you for the memories. We’ve had the time of our lives.