Welcome to Breakdown, an unofficial resource and discussion list about the innovative guitarist/producer Michael Brook. This site is infrequently updated, but contains a great deal of background info which will remain online. For up-to-date news and information, visit Michael Brook's official site and MySpace page.

Critic's Choice: Albino Alligator
from Billboard
22 February 1997
[archived here without permission]

Producer/infinite guitar whiz Michael Brook is a master of insular atmosphere and abstraction, as evidenced on his excellent solo guitar album "Cobalt Blue." But in the spirit of Jon Hassell and Brian Eno, Brook is at his best conjuring collaborative impressions of a fourth world. Akin to his groundbreaking productions of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and U Srinavas for Real World, Brook's steamy score to the bayou noir film "Albino Alligator" weaves the organic, ethnic sounds of bluesy sax, Arabic ney flute, and tuned percussion into enveloping electro-ambient dreamscapes. Bonus: The one vocal track is a sublimely spooky duet on the standard "Ill Wind (You're Blowing Me No Good)" by crooner Jimmy Scott and R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe.