EDGE OF SERENITY, solo (NL)

Mark Brekelmans is a metal and rock bass player from the Netherlands. Mark is currently involved in the melodic metal band Edge of Serenity but also cooperates on numerous live and studio projects.

To support Mark’s musical activities, Mayones has delivered 3 custom instruments over the last 2 years, built according to the exact demands of the young musician. Two six-stringed Custom Basses were made first: Comodous 6 with Eye Poplar top and a Victorious 6 with Ebony Macassa top both equipped with Ebony fingerboard, Bartolini Soapbar pick-ups, Aguilar built-in preamp, Schaller bridge, tuners and straplocks. To expand tonal possibilities of the instruments, we installed a set of mini-switches: separate coil-splitting for both pickups, Mid range selection and active/passive switch.

One and a half years later a Fretless Comodous 6 was made with Amazaque top, Wenge/Pakouk neck, Ebony fingerboard, Nordstrand DC6 pick-ups, Aguilar built-in preamp, Mayones X2 bridge, Schaller tuners and straplocks. Again to expand tonal possibilities, this bass was fitted with a Serial/Parallel pick up wiring switch, active/passive switch, Passive tone knob and a stacked Mid frequency sweep and level knob.

"I got my first two basses after a three month wait and my expectations where high! Mayones however met all of them. They are in perfect balance both in a seated and a standing playing environment; they look gorgeous and have almost endless tonal possibilities. They also have a large amount of growl in them while still keeping the low end tight."

"To give these six strings a good test I took them into the studio the same day I got them. So without having played or heard these two basses before, I’ve recorded a pre recording for the new album of Xystus with them. They rocked! They sounded perfectly balanced and gave me every tone I wanted. The tone on the basses is always full, even on the highest notes, and you can clearly hear how the wood sounds. I have the same electronics and pickups installed in both my basses but they still sound completely different due to the different tops they are fitted with. And that’s exactly how I want it! I love to hear the sound of the wood! One of the things that however strikes me most is the extreme playability; the neck has a certain form that fits my hands perfectly. Therefore playing these basses feels like they were made with talent included."

"What is also very new to me is that the basses sound great in every setting. I have owned a great deal of custom basses in the past, but on these basses it doesn’t matter if I play tapping or finger style, if I play jazzy stuff or big and fast metal parts. The basses just keep up. I always want my basses to have growl but still manage to keep all the tones tight. They need a fast neck which allows me to play every crazy thing I think off and they need to look good. I don’t have to look any further."

Over the course of the last 5 years Mark has played true progressive metal with Melora Rain, who will release their second EP end of 2009, and modern rock in Dutch band Forfeit. He also joined the band Xystus for the stunning ‘Equilibrio, A Rock Opera’ which was performed for thousands of people and was released world wide on CD, live DVD and live CD. He has also contributed on numerous albums of other artists.

As of April 2009 he is a member of the melodic metal band Edge of Serenity who have released their debut album world wide on 5 May 2009.

Mark Brekelmans official MySpace profile: www.myspace.com/markbrekelmans

Edge of Serenity official website: www.edgeofserenity.com

Edge of Serenity official MySpace profile: www.myspace.com/edgeofserenity