It all started in the summer of 2011 in a narrow, dimly lit corridor, deep within the belly of a cruise ship. Jackie Pock, a nervous, newly-hired showband singer met her new boss, veteran music director and guitarist Brandon Gibbons, for the first time. A far cry from the classic ‘love at first sight’ scenarios we’re used to seeing in the movies, Jackie recalls this initial meeting; “He was wearing a beanie, an Ed Hardy thermal, blue cargo-capri pants, and orange crocs with white socks! Gross!” Despite the difference in their fashion sense, the two quickly became best friends and what would become musical partners for life. “It seemed like right away we began making plans to be roommates and have a band on land.” Brandon recalls. Over the next couple of months and the course of more than a few magical performances, that friendship grew into something more. “Yeah, I’m proud to say that I shacked up with the management and got that room with a porthole that I always wanted!” Jackie brags.
Two years later, when the novelty of ship life wore off, the two decided it was time to rejoin the real world. After a cross country road trip, they pulled into Seattle, a newly engaged couple with plans to take over the world. “We were determined to put our knowledge and experience to use right away and began trying to recreate the band we’d had on ships.”
To their surprise, they found themselves on a path that was riddled with brick walls and road blocks at every turn in a music scene that took little interest in cover bands. Out of shear frustration, Jackie and Brandon decided to face their long standing phobia of songwriting and in early 2014 the couple released their debut EP, A Formal Introduction, under the name ‘Jackie Pock Band’.