Arrah and the Ferns grew from three friends playing music together to one of the hottest bands in Indiana's vast musical landscape. The Muncie folk trio debuted on a cold December night at an open mic in 2005. Months later their first album, "Evan is a Vegan," won fans across the Midwest. They performed alongside national indie rock acts such as Deerhoof, Xiu Xiu and Danielson. When they headlined a 2007 music festival in Houghton, Mich., Arrah Fisher, Carl Stovner and Dave Segedy were greeted as rock stars.
And then, in early 2008, with a much-anticipated sophomore album nearing completion, they broke up.
Friday night, the band will reunite and take the stage in Muncie once again for two performances. In the evening, they will play an all-ages show at Village Green Records, followed by a set at Doc's Music Hall.
A Brief History
Arrah Fisher met Carl Stovner — who had just moved to Muncie from Idaho — at a Village Green Records show in 2005. They became fast friends, hanging out and playing music together.
Dave Segedy performed alongside Stovner in This Story, and after hearing about Fisher and Stovner's jam sessions, asked if they needed a drummer.
Their brand of teen angst inflected folk-pop and energetic live performances brought them quick success. Two months after their debut, Indianapolis' Standard Recording Company asked them to record an album.
In 2007, the band added bassist Joey Patrick and work began on a sophomore album. New songs grew more adult in nature, reflecting the band members' changing lives. And as their lives changed so did their goals. Stovner and Fisher wanted to take the band to Philadelphia. Segedy wanted to dedicate time to art school at Indiana University. They considered replacing members, but early in their existence, they vowed there would be no band without all three of them involved.
"It's like if the Edge quit U2 and they continued making music as U2," Stovner said. "It wouldn't be the same band."
So the friends shelved the new album and parted ways. On a cold May evening in 2008, they played one last show at Village Green Records and said goodbye.
Life after the Ferns
Struggles and challenges awaited Fisher and Stovner in Philadelphia.
"We had some rough luck," Stovner explains. "Arrah had some health problems. We were mugged. Arrah worked a lot. We didn't make a lot of music together ... we went from being big fish in a small pond to being tadpoles in an ocean."
In April, Stovner returned to Idaho following the death of his father. A month later he would briefly reunite with Fisher.
"That's when we realized we missed playing music. It took me leaving for us to realize we went out there to make music," Stovner said.
The two friends parted ways once again, though. Stovner returned home to his family, and Fisher left to travel Europe.
Segedy, however, found a musical rebirth in Bloomington.
"My music tastes and how I played drums changed a lot while playing with the Ferns," Segedy said. "There was a point I looked at the music as adolescent, but now I like it in a different way."
Recently, Segedy has been performing with prog-rock outfit The Native Young and indie rockers Prayer Breakfast. He also plays drums for Asthmatic Kitty artist DM Stith, whose debut album was met with national acclaim this year.
"If I didn't play in Arrah and the Ferns, I probably wouldn't be doing the things I'm doing today," he said.
The Reunion
Stovner and Fisher desired to make music together again. Both planned a November return to Muncie and they decided they would do a Midwest tour as a duo. Things soon fell in place for a three-date Arrah and the Ferns reunion.
While Stovner sees the shows as a chance to begin making music with Fisher again, Segedy views them as an opportunity to have fun.
"The reunion is going to be really good in a lot of ways," he said. "I originally got involved with the band to have fun, but then it got to a point where it had to lead to something more. But this doesn't have to lead to anything. We're broken up. We can just have fun."
Both musicians are excited and moved by the enthusiasm for the reunion.
"I've always been surprised by people's response to our music," Stovner said. "I always thought what we were doing was special but it's a surprise to see people enjoy it as much as we do."
But along with the enthusiasm comes trepidation.
"What if we sound terrible?" Stovner mused. "There will be little time to rehearse. What if we really disappoint people? What if we are sloppy? The whole reunion idea is almost a little scary."
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