Welcome to the series finale of Supernatural Music Extravaganza! In this episode, the Denim Wrapped Nightmares and In Defense of Fandom crews tackle the eternal question: "Why does my Supernatural sound different on {insert name of streaming platform}?!" Spoiler alert: blame capitalism!

The hosts explain the wild world of music licensing, from the show's early "oops, we only bought DVD rights" days to the later "give us your songs FOREVER" era. Turns out those iconic needle drops cost serious upfront cash, which is why Season 1 Dean might be rocking out to "Generic Rock Song #4" instead of AC/DC. RIP original soundtrack, we hardly knew ye (unless you own the DVD).

Featuring insights from Jensen Ackles on budget woes, a deep dive into why physical media matters, and heartfelt tributes to favorite Supernatural needle drops—from "Heat of the Moment" torture to Bob Seger brotherhood feels. Plus: important intel on where to snag those Radio Company vinyls before they're gone again.

The moral of the story? Buy the Blu-rays. Buy the CDs. Stream responsibly. Go to the shows. And never trust a tinkerbell.

Click here to learn more about music supervision and Alexandra Patsavas.

Catchup on Supernatural Music Extravaganza episodes, shop, and find playlists at linktr.ee/SPN20.

Thank you for taking this SPN Family musical journey with us! Please continue to follow Denim-wrapped Nightmares and In Defense of Fandom. Next up, Berly and LA will discuss the lore, the gore, and what they adore about Supernatural, season 9, while Sadie takes a comprehensive look at fandom conventions. We hope to see you in 2026!

Special thanks to Steve Hein, producer of the hit podcast, Supernatural Then and Now, for permission to include part of their conversation with Phil Sgriccia. Find their full discussion at podcasts.apple.com/ec/podcast/bloody-mary-featuring-producer-director-phil-sgriccia/id1605385289?i=1000551011238.

Special thanks to our "favorite needle drop" contributors: Kera Styler, Nessa Colt, Lauren from Hops Geek News, Lynn from SPN 'Verse, Jordan, Liz, Iggy, Nerdy Tavern, and Waleed from the Wally Verse.

Special thanks to our music contributors: Richard Cummins (richardcummins.bandcamp.com/music), Gil McKinney (music.apple.com/us/artist/gil-mckinney/315769280), The Station Breaks (music.apple.com/us/artist/the-station-breaks/1181728798), Briana Buckmaster and Billy Moran (music.apple.com/us/album/carry-on-wayward-son-single/1487727442).

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We're nearing the end of this special collaboration between Denim-wrapped Nightmares and In Defense of Fandom. Devastating, we know, but we're going out with a bang 🥁

The final Supernatural Music Extravaganza Artist-on-Artist episode features Mark Sheppard and Richard Speight, Jr., in an unscripted conversation about accidentally building the best damn concert series in convention history.

Mark's Journey: From touring stadiums with Robyn Hitchcock at 17 and co-founding School of Fish to walking away from music entirely when he got sober in 1990. Two decades later, he's back behind the kit at Supernatural conventions, and now touring with Dick Jr. and the Volunteers because—why not?

Rich's Journey: This dreamboat drifted through dives in Nashville cover bands for free beer, had one record deal at 25 (RIP Fugitive Pope), then hung up his bass for dad life. Fast forward to conventions where he became a chaos agent—moving chairs against orders, turning sad karaoke into ragers, and masterminding the infiltration of Louden Swain disguised as "The Elastic Waistbands."

How Saturday Night Special Happened: The Elastic Waistbands (voted Las Vegas' fourth-best lounge act three years ago 🎭) was Rich's trojan horse to get a real band into conventions. Rob Benedict had a stroke (damn his doe eyes), which somehow led to the first big Saturday night concert. Mark showed up, took one look at the equipment situation, and basically said "if we're doing this, we're doing it RIGHT"—cue the 53-foot trailer, massive PA, and actual production value. Philosophy: "Come back when you don't suck." SNS ain't karaoke.

The Good Stuff: 🎵 Osric learning guitar in two weeks and destroying crowds with "Creep" 🎵 Jensen Ackles giving his stamp of approval and joining the show 🎵 14-minute "Raspberry Beret" featuring an 11-minute Grammy speech 🎵 Mark casually leaving $15K in drums in an unlocked storefront in Enterprise, Oregon 🎵 Billy Moran being an absolute virtuoso who makes everyone sound better

It's about the magic of live performance, the Supernatural family, why making music with your friends beats everything else, and how they accidentally created a convention model that changed the game.

Special thanks to Rich for allowing us to feature some of his band's music. Find tracks and more at https://www.dickjrandthevolunteers.com/.

Catchup on Supernatural Music Extravaganza episodes and find playlists at https://linktr.ee/SPN20

Follow Denim-wrapped Nightmares (if you're not already) and turn on notifications for new episodes. Find and follow In Defense of Fandom at https://www.geekscape.net/in-defense-of-fandom.

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Have a Holly Jolly Christmas... with Denim-wrapped Nightmares, In Defense of Fandom, and two guys talking about their musical journey!

In this first installment of the Supernatural Music Extravaganza's Artist on Artist series (aka "SPNception"), Rob Benedict and Jason Manns unwrap the gift that keeps on giving: their unlikely musical empire built on the back of a TV show about two guys with shotguns. Consider this your Christmas present from the Supernatural music family!

Jason reflects on those early convention days when he'd perform for crowds wondering "Who's the big guy?" (spoiler: he wasn't on the show), while Rob reminisces about Louden Swain playing to literally one person at 12:30 AM. They share stories about that pivotal 2011 European tour that almost didn't happen because ticket sales were... let's say "intimate," and how Saturday Night Special evolved from a disjointed variety show featuring Misha's dog tricks to the concert experience it is today.

The duo discusses their journey from LA bars where friends were too busy catching up to actually listen, to convention stages where you could hear a pin drop during ballads. They bond over the shared experience of finally being able to call themselves musicians without feeling like imposters, the terror of that first fan convention (spoiler: the fans are VERY forgiving), and their continued shock that 20 years later, 60% of convention audiences are still brand new fans.

Plus: How Jason met Jensen at a Christmas party (yes, really—the holiday spirit was strong even back then!), why Rob's mom thinks Jason is Jason Mraz, and dreams of a Supernatural music festival featuring approximately 45 bands with only six actual people.

Special thanks to Jason for allowing us to feature a couple of tracks, which, thematically, are songs from his Christmas with Friends album. Find the CD, vinyl, and more at https://cacoreco.com/.

Catchup on Supernatural Music Extravaganza episodes and find playlists at https://linktr.ee/SPN20

Follow Denim-wrapped Nightmares (if you're not already) and turn on notifications for new episodes. Find and follow In Defense of Fandom at https://www.geekscape.net/in-defense-of-fandom.

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In this special collaboration episode between Denim-wrapped Nightmares and In Defense of Fandom, hosts LA, Berly, and Sadie dive deep into the world of Supernatural-inspired music—because apparently, watching two gorgeous brothers hunt monsters for 15 seasons wasn't enough.

FEATURED ARTISTS:

🎵 Jackson Taylor explains how a freak accident and Dean Winchester literally saved his life. Nothing says "casual fan" quite like collecting SPN merch, writing multiple songs, and creating an entire anime project. He's not a fanboy though. Definitely not. 🔗https://www.officialjacksontaylor.com/

🎵 Angel and the Deathlights discuss their hit "If You're Dean Winchester, I'm Misha Collins"—a play on an old emo track about being desperately in love with a fictional character. They also geek out about cutting vinyl records on 1940s analog equipment. 🔗https://music.apple.com/us/artist/angel-the-deathlights/1681200167

🎵 Ambush Vin shares how Supernatural stayed constant through two marriages and reveals his "bio rap" tribute to Dean. When asked if he'll write one for Sam, he admits everyone asks him that. Sorry, Sam fans—Dean's just that guy. 🔗https://ambushvin.com/

🎵 Nathan Ball explains how his band Southbound Fearing accidentally wrote a Billboard Top 10 hit with Supernatural themes, despite him being the only fan in the group. Picture a tour bus full of musicians while Nathan's in the back streaming episodes on his iPhone 5. 🔗https://music.apple.com/gb/artist/bury-the-fear/1737653619

🎵 Reyna Roberts reveals how a teenage crush on Dean Winchester became her first country song—and eventually led to working with Beyoncé. She's now the "Princess of Outlaw Country," but still gets shy thinking about whether Jensen Ackles has heard her thirsty lyrics. 🔗https://reynaroberts.com/

Whether you're into outlaw country, emo-pop, bio raps, or Southern rock, this episode proves that Supernatural's musical influence extends far beyond AC/DC and Kansas. As we are at the midpoint of our musical Supernatural journey, please check out these playlists of songs featured in our episodes so far!

• Apple Music
• YouTube Music
• Spotify

Now if you'll excuse us, we need to go Shazam some classic rock while crying about found family.

Content Warning: Contains discussions of addiction, SH, and depression. If you need help, please call 988.

Catchup on Supernatural Music Extravaganza episodes at https://linktr.ee/SPN20

Follow Denim-wrapped Nightmares (if you're not already) and turn on notifications for new episodes. Find and follow In Defense of Fandom at https://www.geekscape.net/in-defense-of-fandom.

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Welcome to the ultimate SPN music nerd-out! This Denim-wrapped Nightmares and In Defense of Fandom crossover dives deep into the sonic world of Supernatural with the dynamic duo behind the show's iconic score: composers Christopher Lennertz and Jay Gruska.

Chris and Jay split scoring duties for all 15 years (yes, really—they alternated episodes like the world's most functional musical marriage), and they spill all the secrets: from creating the beloved "Americana" family theme to writing horror music that could pivot to comedy faster than Dean Winchester can inhale a slice of pie.

Discover how these fraternity brothers-turned-collaborators blended classic rock vibes with creepy cellos, why Jay nearly got canceled by fans for using the family theme with the wrong character (oops), and what it was like scoring everything from black-and-white monster homages to full-blown musicals. Plus: behind-the-scenes stories about schmuckbait, temp scores, and why sometimes you just have to let the tuba impulses go.

Whether you're here for the technical talk or just want to know how they made 327 episodes feel like coming home, this episode is a love letter to the unsung heroes who made sure we felt every Winchester moment—even when we didn't consciously notice the music at all.

Special thanks to Rob Benedict and Louden Swain for allowing us to feature a couple of their tracks, which, thematically, are also songs from Supernatural episodes. Find music and more at https://www.loudenswain.com/.

Catchup on Supernatural Music Extravaganza episodes below:

1. Meet your co-hosts | https://www.buzzsprout.com/2076426/episodes/18168976
2. More than Background Music - Creating the Convention Experience | https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/spn20-music-extravaganza-more-than-background-music/id1674695211?i=1000737194995

Follow Denim-wrapped Nightmares (if you're not already) and turn on notifications for new episodes. Find and follow In Defense of Fandom at https://www.geekscape.net/in-defense-of-fandom.

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Berly and LA of Denim-wrapped Nightmares and In Defense of Fandom's Sadie Witkowski kick off their massive 10-episode collaboration celebrating the 20th anniversary of Supernatural by diving into the show's iconic musical legacy. And yes, they interviewed nearl  20 people for this series because apparently they're all insane.

The episode opens with a power move: Sadie asking Jared and Jensen about Supernatural's music at a convention panel (using Berly's name callout because Berly is a good friend who understands true J2 fandom priorities). From there, the hosts explore why music became so fundamental to the show's DNA—including Eric Kripke almost quitting over the network wanting to ditch classic rock for "current, exciting, young music."

They discuss fan-favorite needle drops, with Death's entrance to "O Death" taking the crown as most mentioned, followed by the "Renegade" escape in "Night Shifter" and "Rooster" in "Folsom Prison Blues." There's also a moment of silence for all the needle drops lost to streaming music licensing (RIP "Don't Fear the Reaper" in the Faith episode).

The hosts break down the convention music experience—Saturday Night Specials, Louden Swain as the house band, Jason Manns, and the revelation that there's literally music everywhere at these things. LA admits she had no idea conventions even had concerts before attending her first one.

Important PSA: This series features interviews with composers Chris Lennertz and Jay Gruska, musicians inspired by the show, and approximately everyone talented in the Supernatural universe (who was willing to meet with us). Subscribe to both podcasts to hear all the interviews, because yes, you have to follow both feeds. It's free though, so they're really not that evil about it.

The series drops November 11th and runs through the end of the year, featuring professional interviews conducted at reasonable morning hours (tragically not tipsy).

Follow Denim-wrapped Nightmares (if you're not already) and turn on notifications for new episodes. Find and follow In Defense of Fandom at https://www.geekscape.net/in-defense-of-fandom.

Special thanks to Steve Hein, producer of the hit podcast, Supernatural Then and Now, for permission to include part of their conversation with Eric Kripke. Find their full discussion at https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/spotlight-on-eric-kripke/id1605385289?i=1000646839769.

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Berly and LA close out Season 8 with their special features breakdown, a giveaway announcement, and all the wrap-up goodness you could ask for!

First up: The Giveaway! They're giving away a large Denim-Wrapped Nightmares tote bag (big enough for groceries, the beach, or your emotional baggage) plus a blood sploogge zipper pouch (perfect for makeup, toiletries, or—given the design—feminine products). To enter, post about why you adore the podcast on social media, tag them, and use #DWNPod.

The hosts dive into Season 8's special features, which they agree are way better than previous seasons—less "are Michael and Lucifer brothers?" nonsense, more actual behind-the-scenes goodness. Highlights include learning that the "Bitten" found footage episode needed a veteran director because it was way harder than expected, discovering the tablets storyline was inspired by Raiders of the Lost Ark vibes, and getting a whole featurette about why Castiel is important (which feels ironic since they tried to kill him off last season).

Best gag reel moment? Jensen face-planting, shown FOUR times, plus mounting evidence that Jared Padalecki is an absolute menace on set.

They wrap up with favorite episodes (spoiler: both loved Charlie episodes, Berly's obsessed with Benny), discuss their 72 blood splooges to date, add more ideas to their American Horror Stories-inspired revival list (now at 45+ concepts), and say goodbye to recurring characters they don't expect back.

Important announcement: They're taking a break for their Supernatural Music Extravaganza—a 20th-anniversary celebration that somehow ballooned from 3-4 episodes to 10. Season 9 coverage returns in January 2025!

Sources:

• Angel Warrior featurette - https://youtu.be/S0giqQl4xvM?si=wsSUkWYcFL41aRtS
• Gag reel - https://youtu.be/7fx0D7-kp-g?si=X0eM8e77_3Cu_WGd

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In this special bonus episode recorded before their Season 8 finale discussion, Berly and LA score the ultimate get: Ben Edlund himself, the genius writer-producer who literally gave their podcast its name with that iconic "denim-wrapped nightmares" line from Season 6.

Ben takes the hosts on a wild ride through his Supernatural journey, from joining the show in Season 2 (after binge-watching all of Season 1 on VHS tapes like some kind of monster) to navigating what he describes as the show's "muscle car, bro-y" culture while being the guy who brought whimsy and chaos to the series. He reveals the origin stories behind fan-favorite episodes like "Monster Movie" (spoiler: it involved solving the "good will hunting on the board" problem of classic Hollywood monsters), "The French Mistake" (originally pitched as more Broadway Danny Rose, Kripke made it meta perfection), and the Ghost Facers theme song (yes, that's Ben singing in falsetto).

The conversation gets emotional discussing "Abandon All Hope" and the heartbreaking deaths of Ellen and Jo—a decision Ben clarifies wasn't solely his but one he committed to making as devastating as possible. He also defends killing too many characters (sort of), explains why Andy and Bobby should've stuck around for story leverage, and admits he probably wouldn't kill a dog in "Repo Man" if he wrote it today.

Fair warning: Ben's a delightfully rambling genius who goes on tangents about everything from Bat Boy to Steely Dan production modes, and the hosts are living for every minute of it.

Sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Edlund

Footnote: Since the recording of this interview, Berly and LA have, in fact, cried during another one of their episodes.

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Berly and LA dive into the emotional rollercoaster that is Supernatural's Season 8 finale, and spoiler alert: there were tears. Like, a LOT of tears.

The episode kicks off with Crowley crashing Sheriff Jody Mills' blind date in the worst possible way (choking her out, not the fun kind), leading to Dean making a deal he swore he wouldn't make. Sam continues the demon-curing trials while injecting Crowley with purified blood, which leads to Mark Sheppard delivering a heartbreaking performance about just wanting to be loved. Meanwhile, Castiel gets manipulated by Metatron in what turns out to be a scheme to cast all angels out of heaven—not exactly the "closing the gates" plan they signed up for.

The hosts are especially emotional about the final church scene between Sam and Dean, where Sam confesses he feels like he constantly lets Dean down, and Dean finally tells him to stop the trials. Cue the waterworks. Also featuring: Abaddon's fiery return (RIP that nice suit), Kevin stress-drinking whiskey in the bunker, and a whole lot of screaming at the TV about whether Jody survived.

Fair warning: bring tissues and prepare for your heart to shatter into a million pieces. Multiple times.

Sources:

• https://supernatural.fandom.com/wiki/Sacrifice
• https://www.buzzsprout.com/2076426/episodes/13142091

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Berly and LA tackle Supernatural Season 8, Episode 22: "Clip Show" - opening with the goriest moment of the episode as Tommy Collins's head literally explodes in front of his girlfriend. 

Sam and Dean discover Men of Letters footage showing priests attempting to "cure" demons using purified blood injections. They find a secret dungeon with the prettiest devil's trap ever, then resurrect Abaddon by sewing her head back on. She escapes after her severed hand crawls up her body to remove the bullet - the hosts loved Alaina Huffman's performance making the hand seem alive.

Cas tries apologizing to Dean by buying him a care package (jerky, beer, pie, Busty Asian Beauties) in an adorable convenience store scene. Meanwhile, Metatron recruits him for Heaven-closing trials, starting with killing a flirty Nephilim waitress who complimented his coat.

The devastating turn: Crowley threatens to murder everyone Sam and Dean have ever saved unless they stop the trials. He kills people every 12 hours - Jenny Klein gets charred, and Sarah Blake suffocates while Sam holds her. They can't find the hex bag hidden in electronics in time.

The episode ends with Sam wanting to surrender and Dean insisting they continue, setting up an impossible dilemma for the finale. The hosts were emotionally wrecked by Sarah's death after really thinking they'd save her.

"I've had that hangover. Jaeger man."

Sources:

• https://supernatural.fandom.com/wiki/Clip_Show
• https://www.gotquestions.org/Abaddon-Apollyon.html

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