Cousin Oven is the New Jersey/New York City-based rock band led by frontman Owen Bologna, a guitarist, singer, and multi-instrumentalist originally from Connecticut

Cousin Oven started out as a solo project with no real direction or goal other than being an identity for an outlet in writing concept-driven albums. His first album, “A Sound View” is a collection of songs inspired by houses in his home town while his second album, “Royale for the Dogs” depicts the curious and deranged imagery of dreams. As a songwriter, Owen pulls from his experiences as a classical trumpet player, as well as his background in jazz guitar and melds the two musical identities into a uniquely voiced alternative rock group heavily influenced by the raw and honest recordings of bands like Big Thief, Options, and Slaughter Beach Dog.

After the release of Royale for the Dogs Owen decided to turn the solo project into a more collaborative musical entity. Previously Owen would write, record, and mix entire projects himself. After doing this for two full albums, he began to feel burnt out on creating long-form concept albums and writing and recording all of the parts himself. Over the pandemic, he decided to shift his role in the group by including Nathan Giordano on bass and Steve McArdle on drums in the writing and recording process for their 3rd album entitled, “Manor Crescent.” A collection of songs inspired by introspection and observation during 2020.

Steven McArdle is a drummer, percussionist, producer, composer, and educator in Brooklyn, NY. He currently fulfills many roles in the New York music scene - freelancing as a live and a studio drummer, performing and recording music across of all styles. His full-time projects are Sasco – where he records and releases original electronic music, Cousin Oven – a three piece band he’s played in since 2019 with songwriter Owen Bologna and bassist Nate Giordano, and Sunnyside Electric – a free improv electroacoustic collective formed in 2022 where he is able to use his specialization in electroacoustic drumming in an ensemble setting.

As a student, Steven studied with world class musicians including Victor Lewis, Robby Ameen, Clarence Penn, EJ Strickland, Keith Aleo, and Rob McEwan, and attained an MM in Jazz Performance in 2020.

As a performer, he has shared the stage with artists such as Benny Golson, Kuumba Frank Lacy, Dick Oatts, Earl MacDonald, Roomful of Teeth, Caroline Shaw, Joseph Schwantner, Brian Landrus, and many more. His recording career is as stylistically diverse as his performance history, having recorded with Konrad Malinowski, Desiree Camille, The Art of Huckleberry, Junyi Liang, Rickshaw Ride, Anteater, Cousin Oven, Sunnyside Electric, Michael O’Callaghan, Evan O. Adams, and Lena Ruth. Steven also has built an extensive catalog of original music under the alias Sasco, where he has released 3 albums, 3 EP’s, one beat tape, and multiple remix projects, along with being featured on compilations with artists from around the globe.

Check the "Events" and "Media" pages on stevenmcardlemusic.com for recordings and an updated list of public performances and releases.