Robert Solli Burås (12 August 1975 – 12 July 2007) was guitarist and songwriter in the Norwegian rock band Madrugada. He was also a founding member of the band

My Midnight Creeps My Midnight Creeps (initiated 2003 in Oslo, Norway) was a Norway, Norwegian rock band fronted by deceased Madrugada (band), Madrugada-guitarist Robert Burås and Ricochets (Norwegian band), Ricochets-guitarist Alex Kloster-Jensen. Biography Oth ...

, where he played guitar and was lead singer. On 12 July 2007, Burås was found dead in his apartment by a friend, with his guitar in his hand. After a ceremony in Sofienberg Church in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, he was cremated. His ashes lie at Bjerkvik Cemetery in

Nordland Nordland (; smj, Nordlánnda, sma, Nordlaante, sme, Nordlánda, en, Northland) is a county in Norway in the Northern Norway region, the least populous of all 11 counties, bordering Troms og Finnmark in the north, Trøndelag in the south, N ...

, Norway.

Early life

According to a radio interview with

NRK NRK, an abbreviation of the Norwegian ''Norsk Rikskringkasting Aksjeselskap, AS'', generally expressed in English as the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation, is the Norwegian government-owned radio and television public broadcasting company, and ...

disc jockey Harald Are Lund in 2006, Robert Burås' first real contact with rock music came in the form of a mix tape. The first song on the tape was

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

's ''

Rock and Roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

'', and 12-year-old Robert was hooked. In later years, he mentioned ''Rock and Roll'' as a favourite of his.

Madrugada

After playing in local bands with friends and schoolmates in his adolescent years, he formed Abby's Adoption with drummer John Lauvland Pettersen and bass player

Frode Jacobsen Frode Jacobsen (born 11 June 1974) is a musician, bass guitarist, songwriter and record producer from Stokmarknes in Norway. He is the founding member of the band Madrugada, one of the most successful acts in Norwegian musical history. Jacobsen i ...

. The three teamed up with singer

Sivert Høyem Sivert Høyem (born 22 January 1976) is a Norwegian musician, best known as the vocalist of the rock band Madrugada. After the band broke up following the death of Robert Burås in 2007, he has enjoyed success as a solo artist and is also a m ...

, changed their name to Madrugada and relocated to

shortly after that. Madrugada's debut EP was released in 1998.

My Midnight Creeps

Robert Burås founded ''My Midnight Creeps'' in 2005 in which he performed as lead singer/guitarist as well as fronting the band and writing the majority of the material. They released two albums: the eponymous ''My Midnight Creeps'' (2005) and ''Histamin'' (2007).

Instruments

Burås' instrument of choice throughout his career with Madrugada was a 1966 vintage, Candy Apple Red,

Fender Jazzmaster The Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, Fender Jazzmaster is an electric guitar designed as a more expensive sibling of the Fender Stratocaster. First introduced at the 1958 NAMM Show, it was initially marketed to jazz guitarists, but found ...

. This guitar was placed on top of the coffin during his funeral service. Also used extensively were his sunburst Fender Stratocaster, black

Gibson Les Paul The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typi ...

Custom and in later times with My Midnight Creeps he performed mostly with a brown Gibson ES-345. He also played the Harmonica, electric

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

and occasionally piano.

References

External links

Official Madrugada homepage
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buras, Robert 1975 births 2007 deaths Norwegian rock guitarists Musicians from Narvik 20th-century guitarists