Musician Tim Darcy said he has only visited Bloomington once before, back in 2014 while touring with his Montreal-based band Ought.
“I feel like with a place like Bloomington – it doesn’t need to be big or have anything in particular – there’s an aura about a place where it seems like people are happy,” Darcy said. “There’s a really good system, good food there and I’m looking forward to the show.”
Darcy will return to Bloomington for a show celebrating his debut solo album, “Saturday Night.” The doors will open at 8:30 p.m. Wednesday at the Bishop.
Darcy said his musical beginnings included learning to play the piano and the drums, though his real passion was always in the guitar.
“I got my first guitar when I was 16 and was immediately really excited about that,” Darcy said. “I learned covers and started writing my own songs based around poems that I’d written. I grew up in a rural area, so there wasn’t a huge culture of singing in a band. It was me and a few others trying to put together these incarnations of different projects.”
After playing in Ought for years, Darcy said the experience of playing solo presented its own set of benefits and challenges, though he never felt unprepared.
“I played solo for a long time before Ought existed, but this is my first tour on these songs,” Darcy said. “I have a really awesome power trio I’m out on the road with, so it’s been really rewarding. It’s scary at times, doing just my songs, but it's really rewarding as well.”
This tour has been a whirlwind, and the group has traveled across the United States, Europe and Canada. The most fun part has been this final stretch, during which they have used an RV as their transport from city to city, Darcy said.
Darcy said his favorite part of performing is the transformation that takes place on stage and the elevation that comes with the agreement to give audience members a good show. There is a unity to live performance that lends to the experience of watching live music.
“There’s something sacred about this space where people are giving you however long – 30 minutes to an hour – to showcase something that is hopefully very intimate or moving or engaging in some way,” Darcy said. “That interaction is very special, even in a conversation. I would much rather listen to one person talk articulately and beautifully for a minute than have small talk or people talking over each other.”
