Museyroom guitarist and singer Jack Donovan and multi-instrumentalist Ben Cohen first wrote and recorded their own songs at age 13. In Cohen's Brooklyn basement, they produced intricately layered pop songs using a casio keyboard, tenor saxophone, acoustic guitar, and an old four track tape recorder. After playing together in a series of bands through high school, the two met drummer Matt Coppola and formed what would become Museyroom, named for an alternate dimension in James Joyce’s Finnegan’s Wake.
Staying true to their name the group’s first full-length album, Pearly Whites, released in 2015, attempts to reach another world. Blending impressionist-inspired melodies with hip-hop rhythms, Pearly Whites “immerses listeners in otherworldly soundscapes with undulating harmonies blanketing punchy drum lines” (SPIN). Nerdist called it “one of those genre-bucking records that dabble in a lot of contemporary styles but don’t stick to one concept too quickly, sharing its ethos with jazz more than folk or indie rock.”
The group’s latest full-length, Sleight of Hand, reflects a similarly diverse sonic palette—from gypsy-jazz-like guitar melodies to motown choruses to West African syncopation to Elliott Smith-style 90’s pop swooning. Each song makes for a snapshot experience, like a solid, yet intricate, knick-knack that fits neatly in the palm of one’s hand. Taken together these tiny puzzle pieces create an expansive mosaic.
Press
SPIN Museyroom Creepily Crescendo On ‘Ballad’
"Blending impressionist-inspired melodies with hip-hop rhythms, Pearly Whites immerses listeners in otherworldly soundscapes with undulating harmonies blanketing punchy drum lines"
Nerdist Museyroom's "Ranges" Is An Idyllic Stroll Through Mystical Woods
"One of those genre-bucking records that dabble in a lot of contemporary styles but don’t stick to one concept too quickly, sharing its ethos with jazz more than folk or indie rock"
Stereogum Museyroom - "Ballad"
"A multitude of eccentric genres melding into one, an epic and dreamy experiment that demonstrates the mad wizardry of Museyroom"
Impose Stream Museyroom's Pearly Whites In Full
"Their debut full-length Pearly Whites is dazzling and remarkably polished—well worth the years of work leading up to its release. Museyroom have employed just about every instrument imaginable to create a field of lush and clear sounds, including the occasional field recordings of chirping birds and ocean waves"
Atwood Magazine Premiere: Museyroom's Dynamic Daydream "Day In/Day Out"
"Museyroom are well on their way to establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned. By defying definition, Museyroom allow their music to speak for itself – and it says so much, in such a short period of time"
Post-Trash Museyroom - "Sleight Of Hand" LP | Post-Trash Exclusive Premiere
"Bold and glistening, shifting in divergent directions from swooning 60's pop and retro R&B to manipulated art rock with West African rhythms and fuzzy bedroom pop. It feels something like a warm blanket or a toasty grilled cheese (you know, comfort food); and for the span of 30 minutes, all is well and fun has been restored"
