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The Bloomington house show network is comprised of dozens of privately owned and rented houses that are scattered across town. On any given night, students and other young adults freely filter in and out of these spaces, packing themselves into hot, stuffy, unfinished basements in order to socialize with friends and listen to a mix of local and touring acts. Somewhere between a house party and a concert, house shows are at the heart of Bloomington\u2019s D.I.Y. music culture. While some house shows are one-off events, most houses have established names and host shows semi-regularly. For the well-established houses, the house’s life as a venue often long outlives any one tenant\u2019s residency. Though these events are open to the public, one must seek them out in order to find them. Facebook events, paper fliers, and word of mouth are the most common vehicles for advertisement. Last Tuesday, I went to The Dream – a house located just south of downtown – to catch Femme Night, featuring Clue, Bad Psychic, Lily on Horn Horse, and Spacer.<\/p>\n

With a few friends in tow, I arrived at The Dream about halfway through Clue\u2019s set. Unfortunately, by the time I made it down to the basement, Clue had finished their short opening performance. Bummed that I missed out on what was billed to be ethereal space punk, I found consolation in the fact that I would be catching this Bloomington band at The Bishop in a few weeks. I took the extra time as a chance to get out of the stagnant heat of a packed basement and explore the venue. The Dream, much like other house show venues that I\u2019ve been to, is like two completely different places above and below ground. Upstairs, the place has an aesthetic that calls to mind any other student house I\u2019ve been to: mismatched dusty old couches, dirty dishes in the sink, and shelves filled with peculiar knickknacks. Downstairs, an obvious effort had been put into transforming an unfinished basement into a D.I.Y. music venue. Towards the far end of the basement, a stage was clearly demarcated with a maroon curtain framing the backdrop, a carpet on the floor, and shiny plastic party streamers hanging from the ceiling. Some mismatched chairs were set up against the perimeter of the basement. To the left of the stage, a table displayed an assortment of band merch and Shut Up And Listen zines. An ineffectual room fan was installed at the center of the basement.<\/p>\n

While outside for a cigarette break, Spacer\u2019s frontwoman Hannah Hadley peeked her head outside to announce that the next act was about to begin. Bad Psychic is the experimental goth synth pop project of Bloomington resident Liv Mershon. Dressed in tight pants, a jacket, scarf, sunglasses, and hat, I was amazed that she did not pass out from the heat, but beyond that, I was immediately taken by Mershon\u2019s live presence. The multi-media artist energetically strutted around the stage with complete control. As haunting and repetitive beats hypnotized the audience into a swaying submission, Mershon delivered eerie vocal affects and impressive soprano runs. Bad Psychic\u2019s EP, Threee,<\/em> is available for streaming<\/a> via Bandcamp.<\/p>\n