Welcome to The Room3 Report: An informal newsletter keeping you up to date on all upcoming performances, music releases, merch drops, and general happenings in the world of Room3. 

Being that this is the first of its kind, I’d like to set some intentions for what we’re doing here. The hope for this newsletter is to 1) extend a bridge that builds a stronger connection between ourselves and the community that supports us,  2) create an up-to-date record of where and when folks can catch us live, and 3) share our musical musings and influences in hopes of inspiring any and all musicians and music-appreciators reading this. We see this project as a community effort – an exchange of energy, a collective catharsis. And while, in a live setting, we initiate the vibes, we depend on all the other bodies in the room to sustain and contribute to the communal energy.

If you’re here, that means you’re a part of the collective! Thank you for joining the ride. This is just the beginning!

What's happening??

In the spirit of the new year, let’s recap Room3’s 2025: 

1) We kicked things off on an extreme high note making our debut in the iconic First Avenue Mainroom for First Ave’s “Best New Bands of 2024.” They say we incited the first ever “jazz mosh” in that room. Who knows if that's true, but the crowd was certainly lit. 

2) We finally released some music! Three singles and eventually our debut 11-song album, “Bill’s Garden,” which came out on Easter Sunday OR national weed day – you choose. The album was named after a crazed spaceman aimlessly floating through space watering withered plants tethered to his body to no avail OR a great Chinese joint in South Minneapolis – again, you choose. Great art is in the eye of the beholder, they say. We had some truly legendary features on this record, including Desmond Teague, David Feily, LA Buckner, Alex Browne, Mike Green, and Jada Lynn. Give it a listen if you haven’t yet!

3) We sold out The Dakota for the “Bill’s Garden” album release show! It was honestly a little nerve-wracking putting together our own show at such a prestigious venue, but we called on some incredible friends for support –  MMYYKK, iLLism, Madame Blu, and Xina – and promoted the hell out of it, and it all worked out. That night was magical. 

4) We started getting some press recognition! Jazz88 named “Moqueca” the Hot New Single of the Week in January, The Current voted us #1 on their annual scouting report in April, Minnesota Monthly elected us Best Live Music of 2025, Racket MN included us in their Picked to Click Top 10 list, The Star Tribune invited us to play at their annual fundraiser as the house band. Say that 5 times fast. Very proud of the mark we’re making in Minneapolis and the plan is to keep the momentum going! 

5) We opened for some world-class touring acts, including Maurice Mobetta Brown and Javier Santiago. 

6) We added Mike Green, guitarist, producer, and songwriter extraordinaire, as our official fifth member. He just joined us in mid-December, and we’re already clicking like he’s been with us for years. It’s awesome to have him on board. 

Recorded music 

We’re working on the second album! Come to a live show to catch a glimpse of what the new record sounds like. We have about 5 or 6 new tunes in the live rotation now. Still thinking on the right name for this next record… 

Concert footage

Clips from our Indeed Brewing set on 12/23 and "The Wrap" Star Tribune Fundraiser show on 1/3 are being uploaded sporadically on our instagram feed (@room3collective). If that's not enough for ya, go check out our YouTube (@room3collective) to revisit some old live concerts!

Merch

New iterations of the classic “Room3” T-shirt are available at all of our live shows! Now in Pink and Dark Purple for $30 a pop. “Bill’s Garden” CDs are also available for $15. Working on getting these online so we can ship them to your doorstep!

This week: "Between Nothingness & Eternity" - Mahavishnu Orchestra (1973)

The Mahavishnu Orchestra is easily one of the most influential bands in the beginning of the fusion era. The OG lineup that consists of leader John Mclaughlin (double neck 12 string guitar), Billy Cobham (drums), Jan Hammer (keyboards), Jerry Goodman (violin) and Rick Laird (bass) would make some incredibly wild, intricate yet very precise music. Known for their mastery of odd time signatures, blisteringly fast tempos, and heavy influence of Indian classical music, their sound created a beautiful blend of Funk, Prog/Psychedelic Rock and Jazz. Though the perfect lineup was short lived and they released a couple amazing studio albums, this band shinned brightest live. They released arguably their best live performance in 1973 shortly before they broke up. It was released as a two-part album, “Live in Central Park” which had songs that spanned from their released albums and then “Between Nothingness and Eternity” which featured 3 of their newer compositions which were intended to be released on their final studio album of this particular lineup of musicians. Take a listen through these to hear some playing that is truly interstellar.

-RAWTWHYLAH (aka Colin Mitchell)

THANK YOU FOR READING! WE LOVE YOU!