The crowd was mild, buzzing around with drinks in hand, talking in groups near booths and by the stage. The space was tight, but cozy. The ideal location for a night of calm music. As the lights dimmed, so too did conversation, as the opening act took the stage.
From the back of the bar, cell phones tucked away, the only glow came from stage lights.
Sean Carey, better known by his stage name S. Carey, took the stage in Bloomington on Thursday night at the Bishop Bar. The singer-songwriter just released his third full-length album, "Hundred Acres," in February. In addition to his solo career, Carey also plays drums for the band Bon Iver.
Carey stopped in Bloomington as part of his current tour with his latest album. The Wisconsin native started this tour in his home state, and will be making his way through the United States in the next few months.
Carey’s opening act, Gordi, a singer-songwriter from Sydney, Australia, brought mellow music, much like Carey’s, to the stage, but moved between guitar and harmonium during her performance. The audience was hushed, the only sound coming from clinking ice in glasses and muffled voices from the bar on the other side of the wall.
“We’ll grind ourselves down to our bitter end,” Gordi sang in the song "Bitter End."
Gordi was humorous, admitting to the audience that she’d forgotten a line to her song. Later, she told a story about her first time in Bloomington. She would return to the stage later on with Carey and the rest of the band.
The crowd became vibrant when Carey took the stage. On his latest album, Carey wrote mostly on guitar, instead of his usual piano. For the performance, however, Carey moved between piano and drums, clearly showing the range of his talents.
Carey joked back and forth with the audience throughout the show. The crowd joined him in a slow-clap upon walking on stage. Later on in the show, he came back to that moment.
“I can’t believe we did that clap thing at the beginning,” he said. “That was weird.”
Carey had band members play with him throughout the show. All were casually dressed, as if they themselves had just walked out of the crowd and onto the stage. Crooning vocals and soaring harmonies from the group, including Gordi, moved through listeners.
The concert was laid back. It felt as though everyone in the room was friends with the performers. The environment matched the calm lyrics of Carey’s songs.
“All we need is a hundred acres and some room to breathe,” he sang in the song "Hundred Acres."
Toward the end of the show, Carey invited a trumpet player on stage to play a couple songs with the band. Gordi returned to the stage for the last song, as they sang lyrics that brought a soothing end to the night.
As Carey and the others left the stage, the audience was at one of their loudest points of the night, chanting three simple words.
“One more song.”
