Branko - My World Electric (2005) [SACD]

Heavy pop rock with lots of electronic soundscapes. Branko blends the electric 80's with the grungy 90's. This album comes as a hybrid multichannel SA-CD (playable on all SA-CD and CD-players).

Welcome to the electric world of BRANKO: a new band with a fresh sound and a clear focus on the good old craftsmanship of writing pop songs with a twist. However new…..? The pop-rockers of Branko have all individually left their tracks in rock ‘n roll land, and now they have joined forces……

Branko was conceived by lead singer and producer Jacko Kreukniet. Together with soul mate Ben Franswa, also a former band member in the promising group Spitball, he worked on Branko’s debut album for two long years. Already in an early stage Branko was adopted by producer, mentor and former Urban Dance Squad drummer Michel Schoots, who clearly recognised and sponsored the potential of their music and even ended up drumming on the album. During the recording process old friends Marcel Singor (guitars) and Ivar Pijper (keys) added their essential flavours to the album and later on joined the band. Bas Hebing (drums) was the last member to join and very eagerly took the offered drum seat.

Supported by some very important ‘behind the scenes’ members of the rapid growing Branko-family, the band managed to produce an album with a true LP-vibe. Twelve strong songs under the title ‘My World Electric’, each with their own particular character but yet forming an unmistakable coherence. At the end of the album making process, Jacko travelled to Los Angeles to team up with a one of the newest members to join the Branko-family: mixing engineer Brad Gilderman. This celebrated technician, who already worked with US artists like Outkast, Brian Wilson en Tom Petty, mixed the album in his Little Big Room Studio and did a great job….. Besides being a huge fan of the band and a terrific person to work with, Brad definitely contributed to the genuine album feel and added a competitive and professional sound.

The album ‘My World Electric’ will be released in January 2006 as a special feature Hybrid-CD. This means that besides the normal CD-layer, the album contains a SA-CD-layer and an 8-channel surround mix (also by Brad Gilderman)!

Branko: Influences?
“We all have our roots in the 80’s and grew up musically in the 90’s. Our mutual musical influences therefore vary from Prince and 80’s New Wave (like The Cure) to the alternative rock of Incubus and Queens of the Stone Age.“

“When they would unleash this band, our album would probably wind up being a mishmash of heavy rock songs with weird electro pop and everything in between! Fortunately we hooked up with Michel Schoots who guided us and organised our work.”

Branko: Happy or sad?
“Because the making of the album stretched across a pretty long period of our lives, a variety of emotions can be heard in the songs. However, even in the happier sounding tracks there is always this cynical undertone. The reason….. happiness is boring and only interesting when it doesn’t last too long…..”

Jacko: “Besides the inevitable themes like love and pain, a lot of the lyrics deal with doubt. I guess I’m a doubter and a sceptic and that’s OK!”.