S. Carey
Sean Carey is a Wisconsin-based singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist who, in addition to releasing a series of well-received chamber folk records as S. Carey, is well known as the drummer and pianist for indie pop group Bon Iver. Carey's solo career began in the 2010s with releases like Range of Light (2014) and Hundred Acres (2018). The deeply introspective Break Me Open appeared in 2022, followed a year later by Shadowlands, an experimental ambient jazz project with trumpeter John Raymond. The 2025 solo EP Watercress revisited Carey's signature minimalist sound.A native of Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, Carey began playing drums at the age of ten and later sought a degree in classical percussion at University of Wisconsin in Eau Claire. After graduating, he joined Justin Vernon's Bon Iver project and became a full-time collaborator, acting as drummer, pianist, and supporting vocalist. During this time, he began developing his own compositions, which meld classical elements with indie folk and rich harmonies.Conceived and composed on the road and executed during tour breaks with Bon Iver, Carey's first solo outing under the moniker S. Carey combined a traditional rock band setup with elements of chamber pop, fusion, and jazz drumming. The meditative and cinematic All We Grow was released by Jagjaguwar in August 2010. An EP called Hoyas appeared in 2012, followed by his second LP, 2014's Range of Light, a work of enchanting chamber folk inspired by the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Nature, a central theme in Carey's brand of orchestral Americana, was again reflected in his 2015 EP Supermoon. Returning in 2018, Carey focused on a more minimalist approach on the warmly introspective Hundred Acres. Another four years passed before Carey returned with his fourth solo effort. A typically reflective collection that ruminated on love, fatherhood, and vulnerability, Break Me Open was released by his longtime label Jagjaguwar in April 2022. A year later, Carey teamed up with horn player John Raymond for a more experimental joint effort. Released in 2023, Shadowlands was informed by a list of genre descriptors, then refined into a collection of lush, ambient jazz, pop, and folk tunes. After this, Carey scaled back down, returning to his nature-oriented minimalist indie folk on the 2025 EP Watercress.
© James Christopher Monger & Timothy Monger /TiVo
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Discography
15 album(s) • Sorted by Bestseller
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Watercress
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 3 Oct 2025
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Shadowlands
International Pop - Released by Libellule Editions on 1 Sept 2023
Available in24-Bit/48 kHz Stereo -
Break Me Open
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 22 Apr 2022
Available in24-Bit/96 kHz Stereo -
Brassy Sun
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 24 Aug 2017
Available in24-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Paralyzed (At Home Version)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 9 Feb 2023
Available in24-Bit/96 kHz Stereo -
Hundred Acres
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 23 Feb 2018
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Fire-scene b/w Chrysalis
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 16 Sept 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
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All We Grow
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 24 Aug 2010
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Shadowlands
International Pop - Released by Libellule Editions on 1 Sept 2023
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
All We Grow (Ten Year Anniversary Edition)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 4 Dec 2020
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Hoyas
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 8 May 2012
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Music for Wood and Strings (Translucent Remake)
Alternative & Indie - Released by Brassland on 19 Feb 2016
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Crown the Pines
Alternative & Indie - Released by Jagjaguwar on 6 Mar 2014
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo -
Colours Remixes (Remix)
Ambient - Released by Micheal Quinn on 4 Mar 2022
Available in16-Bit/44.1 kHz Stereo