Interview By: Pablo CortezPC: How did you guys meet?
TB: Well, I met Rich at school. We sat next to each other in science and were both in bands at the time. When our bands split up it only felt right to write songs together, Rich recommended his old bass player (Chris) and drummer (Beau) to join the band and when we began rehearsing together we knew we were onto something good!
PC: How would you describe your music, where does it fit in today’s broad music landscape?
TB: It’s hard to label our music in a specific genre which I think is the same with a lot of up and coming bands these days. You need to have your sound that defines you but you can’t label yourself and write to one specific audience. I’d say we are a mix between Rock/Pop and alternative music.
PC: You guys are relatively young, where do you plan on taking FranKo, artistically?
TB: As we have grown up with FranKo I believe the later songs have more of a maturity about them. We just continue to write what we think sounds good and then hope our fans like it. We’re not restricted in anyway so there is a lot of room for us to experiment. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t.
PC: How have you guys handled all the traveling you’ve been doing?
TB: Jet-lag is a bitch, but when you’re gigging and doing press, the adrenaline keeps you going. We’re so fortunate to have the opportunity to play in different places all over the world so it really hasn’t been a problem for us.
PC: Walk me through your writing/creative process, do you all get involved?
TB: Usually Rich will write a song and record it on pro tools and send it to me to create some melodies and lyrics for it. Other times, I’ll write a song and we'll work on it at band practice. We all share input and it’s the parts which we all add to the songs which make them FranKo songs instead of "mine" or "Richard's" songs.
PC: You guys have a pretty slick wardrobe; do you all share the same fashion sense?
TB: Similar, but we have our differences. I can’t get enough of All Saints but there’s a lot of interesting items you can find in the most unusual places, a few charity shop items have never let me down.
PC: What is your favorite part about making music/touring?
TB: When you finish a song that you know people are going to enjoy. It’s a great feeling to write a song, sometimes its unbelievably frustrating but when you see the finished product it all seems OK.
PC: Where did the name FranKo come from? For that matter, the spelling?
TB: Well, I have endless relatives over in Italy named FranKo, it’s also my dad’s Italian name. We spent around 3 months trying to figure out which name to go for, and this one seemed right, it sticks in your head like an ABBA chorus.
PC: Who's your favorite all-time band/singer?
TB: The Beatles!
PC: What has fan reaction been at your shows? Have you noticed an increase in fans?
TB: We have noticed an increase in fans, which is incredibly touching. It must mean were doing something right, it’s good to feel like what you’re singing about matters.
