in April/May 2006, the quartet played six shows in Ireland to support the release of The Swell Season. Later in the year (October & December) they also played a number of shows in the US to support the release of the album there. The huge success of the film Once resulted in Glen and Markéta touring the US constantly during 2007 and the line-up morphed over time (Glen and Markéta being the core members). The current Swell Season line-up also includes three members of The Frames: guitarist Rob Bochnik, violinist Colm Mac Con Iomaire, and bassist Joe Doyle. Graham Hopkins joined the tour on drums in spring of 2008.
Hansard and Markéta starred in the film 'Once' by writer/director John Carney (a former bass player of The Frames). Many songs of The Swell Season are used in this film, which won the World Cinema Audience Award at Sundance 2007. Hansard and Irglová won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for the song "Falling Slowly" in February 2008.
For more info: http://www.myspace.com/oncethemovie
Tour dates and audio streams are available from www.theswellseason.com.
The Rain
The Swell Season Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The sun came out at last
And as for all assumptions made
And questions never asked
I know we're not where I promised you we'd be by now
But maybe it's a question of who'd want it anyhow
It doesn't know where to stop the measure of a man
Okay we're not what I promised you we would become
But maybe its a question of how much you really want
Had enough?
Had enough?
There's plenty more where that came from now
Your feeling bored,
Swallowed up
We got hours on you now
Just before the rain came down
The sun came out at last
And as for all assumptions made
And questions never asked
Okay, I'm not what I promised you I would become
I know, we're not what I promised you we'd be by now
Had enough?
Had enough?
There's plenty more where that came from now
Feeling bored
Swallowed up
We got hours on you now
Still on top
Crawling up
We got hours on you now
The Swell Season's "The Rain" is a song that speaks of hope and perseverance through tough times. The lyrics are imbued with a sense of disappointment and self-doubt, but these feelings are balanced with a determination to keep pushing forward. The first and last lines of the song - "Just before the rain came down, the sun came out at last" - act as bookends to the verses, and create a sense that the hard times are temporary and that things will get better.
The lyrics explore themes of unfulfilled promises and unanswered questions. Lines like "I know we're not where I promised you we'd be by now" and "Okay, we're not what I promised you we would become" suggest a sense of disappointment and guilt that the singer feels in regards to someone close to them. Similarly, the line "And as for all assumptions made, and questions never asked" speaks to the idea that sometimes in life, we don't get the answers we're looking for because we've failed to ask the right questions.
Despite the sense of disappointment and doubt the lyrics give off, the song ultimately feels uplifting and hopeful. The lines "Even now the rainbows seem closer to your hand" and "Still on top, crawling up, we got hours on you now" both suggest that, even in difficult times, there is always reason to hope for better things in the future.
Line by Line Meaning
Just before the rain came down
Right before things got tough
The sun came out at last
There was hope and relief
And as for all assumptions made
All the things we thought were certain
And questions never asked
All the things we didn't know to question
I know we're not where I promised you we'd be by now
I understand we haven't met expectations
But maybe it's a question of who'd want it anyhow
Perhaps it wasn't worth having in the first place
Even now the rainbows seem closer to your hand
It's still possible to find beauty in the present
It doesn't know where to stop the measure of a man
It's impossible to judge someone's worth
Okay, we're not what I promised you we would become
I know we fell short of what we aimed for
But maybe it's a question of how much you really want
Perhaps we didn't have the drive to succeed
Had enough?
Are you tired of this?
Had enough?
Are you at your limit?
There's plenty more where that came from now
There's more hardship to come
Feeling bored
Are you tired of waiting?
Swallowed up
Feeling overwhelmed and defeated
We got hours on you now
We've got time to spare, and we'll use it against you
Still on top
We haven't given up
Crawling up
We're slowly making progress
We got hours on you now
We're going to keep working until we come out ahead
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: GLEN HANSARD, GLEN JAMES HANSARD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Charlie Geter
Awesomely beautiful... must listen to all of their songs. They rock.
ChanaRules
I've been listening to this over and over again in my media player, never getting tired of it.
Tuigim
Love 'em. Beautiful music!
water2chick
I love the bass and rythm in this song. It's incredibly gorgeous. I could listen to it over and over. And the lyrics are so meaningful, you just want to hold on.
water2chick
I love the bass and rythm in this song. It's incredibly gorgeous. I could listen to it over and over. And the lyrics are so meaningful, you just want to hold on. Plus, this isn't typical of them either. It gives some spunk. I really like it.
Joshua Feldman
The Rain is a beautiful and intense song. I love how Swell Season Songs swell with emotion that grows.
Rounak Basu
no one sees.. but glen is one of the best singer of the decade!
The Bag Ladies
This music truly affects my soul. It's an inspiration to keep writing good music!
Jón Þór Sigurleifsson
I saw them live in Iceland a month or two ago, it was amazing, one of the best shows I've been to ever. My favorite Swell Season song.
holygoalie73
sensationell sound, a great glen song! mutch feelings and great power, typicall hansard