At What Comes After The Blues, Secretly Group Celebrates Its Three-Decade Journey To The Forefront Of Indie Music

On Saturday night, at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater in Bloomington, Indiana, a group of 600 people gathered for a three-day celebration of Secretly Group's 30th anniversary. The event, titled "What Comes After The Blues: Secretly 30," honored the label's journey since its founding by Ben and Chris Swanson in 1996. Joined by Darius Van Arman and Phil Waldorf, the founders have overseen the expansion of Secretly Group from a small-town label to one of the most influential entities in the indie music scene.

The celebration began with a bluegrass performance at the Bluebird, a local venue with a history of supporting the area's music community. The set featured early Secretly projects such as Songs: Ohia and Early Day Miners, which helped put the label on the map in the late '90s and early 2000s. The weekend's events showcased the label's origins, which were rooted in the Midwestern music scene and its emphasis on unique, idiosyncratic artistry.

Despite the label's global reach today, the founders emphasized that their humble beginnings in Bloomington have been crucial to their success. They fostered a low-cost, low-pressure environment for innovation and experimentation, which set them apart from their coastal counterparts. The artists performing at the event paid tribute to the label's history, with Magnolia & Johnson Electric Co. paying homage to Jason Molina, whose album "What Comes After The Blues" gave the weekend its name.