Marko Matijević Sekul
{{Short description|Croatian musician}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Marko Matijević Sekul
| image = Manntra Wave-Gotik-Treffen 2023 30.jpg
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1987|02|20}}
| birth_place = Ljubljana, Slovenia
| genre = Folk Metal • Industrial Metal
| occupation = Musician • Songwriter • Producer • Audio Engineer
| instrument = Vocals • Guitar • Pipes • Synthesizer • Keyboard
| years_active = 2007–present
| label = Napalm Records • NoCut • Menart • Croatia • Spona • Drakkar • Sony Music Germany
| current_member_of = Manntra
| past_member_of = Omega Lithium, Bastion
| website = {{URL|www.manntra.hr}}
}}
Marko Matijević Sekul (born 20 February 1987) is a Croatian musician, songwriter, and music producer. Though he is best known as the vocalist for the Croatian folk metal band Manntra, Sekul has been involved in a number of music projects both on stage and behind the scenes, winning several awards in the process.
Early life
Marko Matijević Sekul was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia, and grew up in Umag, Croatia. As a child, he had no interest in music until his brother gave him a copy of Depeche Mode's Ultra. His interest piqued, Sekul began hanging around the underground music scene in the Umag area, listening to rehearsals.{{Cite web |last=In |first=Lisa Young |date=September 2009 |title=Interview with Malice Rime (guitar, synths, backing vocals) of Omega Lithium |url=https://www.reflectionsofdarkness.com/artists-k-o/5692-omega-lithium-september-2009 |access-date=March 13, 2025 |website=Reflections of Darkness Music Magazine}}
Music was not his first choice as a profession, however. He initially pursued a career in professional football (soccer). That career was cut short by a broken leg in 2003, which was when he began playing guitar.{{Cite web |last=Eck |first=Markus |date=July 25, 2019 |title=Mastered risk |url=https://metalmessage.de/Interview_MANNTRA_July_2019_en.php |access-date=March 9, 2025 |website=Metal Message}}
Education
Sekul completed his primary education in the Italian language. After, he trained in the direction of management and company administrations at the Secondary School of Economics, in the Croatian language. He then studied audio engineering at the SAE Institute in Ljubljana in the English language.
Career
= Musician =
Sekul (as Malice Rime) was a founding member and guitarist of industrial metal band Omega Lithium in 2007. Upon hearing their demo, Drakkar Records / Sony Music Germany quickly signed the band and offered a European tour with Subway to Sally.{{Cite web |last=Blach |first=Sascha |date=March 13, 2025 |title=Omega Lithium - Biography |url=https://metalstorm.net/bands/biography.php?band_id=5245&bandname=Omega+Lithium |access-date=March 13, 2025 |website=Metal Storm}}{{Cite news |last=Jagatic |first=Dubravko |date=September 22, 2009 |title=SEKUL: 'Kao i Thompson, i mi se naslanjamo na hrvatske kraljeve' |url=https://www.nacional.hr/sekul-kao-i-thompson-i-mi-se-naslanjamo-na-hrvatske-kraljeve/#google_vignette |access-date=March 14, 2025 |work=Nacional na Krilima Demokracije}} Sekul composed all of the music on the band's two albums: Dreams in Formaline (2009) and Kinetik (2011). Omega Lithium's debut single, "Stigmata," received widespread airplay in Croatia and around Europe, peaking at Number 4 on MTV,{{Cite web |date=October 5, 2009 |title=Rock Chart |url=http://www.mtv.com.hr/top-liste/rock-chart |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091009142617/http://www.mtv.com.hr/top-liste/rock-chart |archive-date=October 9, 2009 |access-date=March 13, 2025 |website=MTV}} and the band was named "Newcomer of the Year" by several notable magazines, including Zillo and Sonic Seducer.{{Cite web |date=March 13, 2025 |title=Marko Matijevic Sekul |url=https://www.hds.hr/clan/matijevic-sekul-marko/ |access-date=March 13, 2025 |website=Hrvatsko društvo skladatelja}}
After its disbandment in 2011, Sekul and former Omega Lithium bandmate Zoltan Lečei formed Manntra, with Sekul as both frontman and guitarist, Lečei on bass, and Andrea Kert on drums.{{Cite web |last=Bucko |first=Helena "Hena" |date=April 4, 2013 |title=Manntra – surov, hladan i energičan... balkanski rock bend |url=https://www.muzika.hr/manntra-surov-hladan-i-energican-balkanski-rock-bend/ |access-date=March 7, 2025 |website=Muzika.hr}} After the release of their first EP, the band's manager gave a copy to In Extremo frontman Michael Robert (Micha) Rhein. A year later, Rhein called Sekul and invited Manntra to perform at In Extremo's 20-year anniversary concert at the Loreley Amphitheatre in Germany.
Manntra has released four studio EPs: Horizont (2012), Venera (2015), Meridian (2017), and Nightcall (2021), as well as five full-length studio albums: Oyka! (2019), Monster Mind Consuming (2021), Kreatura (2022), War of the Heathens (2023), and Titans (2025) — with the latter two albums both landing in the top 50 on the German charts.{{Cite web |date=September 29, 2023 |title=Offizielle Deutsche Charts (Official German Charts) |url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-details-524200 |access-date=March 17, 2025 |website=Offizielle Deutsche Charts (Official German Charts)}}{{Cite web |date=March 21, 2025 |title=Offizielle Deutsche Charts (Official German Charts) |url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album |access-date=March 21, 2025 |website=Offizielle Deutsche Charts (Official German Charts)}}{{Cite news |last=Grimaldi |first=Marta |date=December 4, 2024 |title=Manntra anuncia álbum – Festival Candelas Zurbarán Rock Burgos – Nanowar Of Steel vuelve a la carga |url=https://metalhammer.es/manntra-zurbaran-nanowar/ |access-date=March 7, 2025 |work=Metal Hammer}}{{Cite news |date=March 2025 |title=Manntra: New video single 'Unholy Water (Voda)' + album 'Titans' |url=https://sonic-seducer.de/manntra-neue-video-single-unholy-water-voda-album-titans/ |access-date=March 9, 2025 |work=Sonic Seducer}} All were produced, recorded, and mixed by Sekul. In addition, the live EP/video Endlich! Live in Hamburg was released in 2022, and the live album Live in Leipzig in 2024.{{Cite news |last=Trstenjak |first=Maja |date=April 9, 2024 |title=Marko Matijević Sekul: 'Na našim bi koncertima Nijemci htjeli biti Hrvati!' |url=https://glazba.hr/citaj/intervju/marko-matijevic-sekul-manntra-intervju-2024/ |access-date=March 7, 2025 |work=Glazba.hr}}
Sekul and Manntra have participated in several national and international events. In 2019, Manntra was selected to be part of Dora, the Croatian national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest, where they placed fourth.{{Cite news |date=October 21, 2019 |title=Kod Nas Doma - Manntra |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4h-zcgab2I |access-date=March 7, 2025 |work=Hrvatska radiotelevizija}} Two years later, Manntra won the annual "International" competition held by Hrvatsko društvo skladatelja (HDS), the Croatian Composers' Society — the first metal band to win the competition.{{Cite news |last=Jagatic |first=Dubravko |date=November 12, 2023 |title=MARKO MATIJEVIĆ SEKUL: 'Htjeli bismo i doma u Hrvatskoj postići uspjeh kakav smo ostvarili u inozemstvu' |url=https://www.nacional.hr/marko-matijevic-sekul-htjeli-bismo-i-doma-u-hrvatskoj-postici-uspjeh-kakav-smo-ostvarili-u-inozemstvu/#google_vignette |access-date=March 14, 2025 |work=Nacional na Krilima Demokracije}}{{Cite news |last=Vinkovci |first=Radio |date=February 4, 2021 |title=Marko Matijević Sekul dobitnik je potpore na natječaju 'International' HDS-a za novi Manntrin album |url=https://novosti.hr/marko-matijevic-sekul-dobitnik-je-potpore-na-natjecaju-international-hds-a-za-novi-manntrin-album/ |access-date=March 14, 2025 |work=Novosti}} In 2022, Manntra was invited to perform at Wacken Open Air, one of the largest and best-known heavy metal festivals in the world. Also in 2022, Sekul served as a member of the Dora jury for the City of Pula, representing HDS.{{Cite news |last=HRT |date=February 21, 2022 |title=Ukupan broj glasova za Miju Dimšić i Guilty Pleasure |url=https://magazin.hrt.hr/zabava/ukupan-broj-glasova-za-miju-dimsic-i-guilty-pleasure-5612909 |archive-url= |access-date=March 12, 2025 |work=HRT Magazin}}
= Production =
In addition to his work with Manntra, Sekul is a full-time music producer. His first production experiences involved recording original songs in studios around Europe, including a lengthy stint in Hanover at Horus Sound Studio, where he also produced many of Omega Lithium's songs.
In 2015, Sekul started his own studio, Beton Music Agency / Beton Music Studio in Zagreb. He has worked with a number of artists, including Tabu, Nina Kraljić, Big Foot Mama, heavy metal a cappella group Metaklapa, and Marin Jurić-Čivro — the latter of which earned Sekul the award for "Best Arrangement" at the 2017 Split Pop Music Festival for the song "Još Uvijek."
= Composition =
Other projects
Additional works by Sekul include Bastion, a project formed in 2018 with friend and former bandmate Marko Purišić (now known as Baby Lasagna), and guest vocals on The Trigger's Vreme Čuda. He has also appeared (with Manntra) on albums by Subway to Sally and Harpyie, and on the 2023 compilation A Tribute to Rammstein.{{Cite news |last=Editorial Team |date=August 21, 2023 |title=MANNTRA Pays Homage To RAMMSTEIN With Reimagination Of Links 2-3-4 |url=https://bravewords.com/news/manntra-pays-homage-to-rammstein-with-reimagination-of-links-2-3-4/ |access-date=March 10, 2025 |work=Brave Words}}