Marten van Kruijssen, the 'Madly Intense Drummer', is a 22 year young metal drummer who is gaining notoriety fast for his intense, fast and energetic drum style, his stage performance, and of course his unique appearance. He is currently active in Houwitser, an established name in the Dutch death metal scene that has been around since 1997 and released five albums to much critical acclaim. Marten also plays in Dictated (NL) and Omega (FR).

After a couple of years of piano and general music lessons, there was no denying that Marten had some musical talent in him. But this wasn't necessarily exposed by playing the piano. His parents made the ever regretted decision to give it a try on a drum kit. Many noisy hours where endured by the neighborhood since that cold Christmas day in 2004.

It didn't take long to figure out that the preferred style of music required a double base pedal. Metal and metal alone it was. After some years trying to play like bands like Slayer and Lamb of God, Marten joined some local bands. Playing some gigs in the local bars and venues greatly increased his motivation to play the drums. Marten practiced like there was no tomorrow, which resulted in better gigs and more serious goals for his bands Purest of Pain and For Vengeance. After lots of shows in The Netherlands between 2008 and the beginning of 2010, both bands didn't work out anymore for Marten.

In the meanwhile Marten passed the auditions at vocational school “Nederlandse Pop Academie “ (Dutch Pop Academy), where he started to learn a lot more about becoming a professional musician, music theory and the music business in general. At the academy, Marten had Arien van Weesenbeek (God Dethroned, Epica) and Koen Herfst (Ichaos, Dew Scented) as his drum teachers. Also, he joined a grindcore project called The Swarm. Some shows were played and a demo e.p. was recorded. Since The Swarm was a project, the band was never meant to last long.

In the summer of 2010, Marten joined Dutch death metal band Dictated. With this band, Marten was able to reach a bigger audience, supporting established metal acts like God Dethroned, Lividity, Cliteater, and playing the bigger venues in The Netherlands. Because of their growing reputation, Dictated was asked to play several festivals in The Netherlands and Germany, sharing the stage with bands like Misery Index, Decapitated and Suicidal Angels.

2010 was also the year for Marten to start teaching drums. He started teaching kids from the age of 10 the basics of drumming, and also had a few students interested in playing metal.

At the end of 2011 Marten joined two more death metal bands, Houwitser (NL) and Nibirus (FR). After filling in for their original drummer at the Way Of Darkness Festival, Marten was asked to join Houwitser permanently. French band Nibirus got in contact with Marten after seeing one of Marten's youtube movies, which were rapidly gaining popularity.

2012 was an eventful year for Marten. In February, Houwitser did a headliner tour in Russia, followed by a two week European tour with Dictated, supporting Origin and Psycroptic. In addition to many gigs in The Netherlands and abroad, Marten played at internationally known festivals like Neurotic Death Fest and Obscene Extreme Fest.

Marten van Kruijssen is former drummer for Purest of Pain (2088-2009), Decimate To Dominate (2008-2009), For Vengeance (2008-2010) and Dictated (2010-2013).



Marten is currently drumming with The Swarm, and Houwitser. He joined Anatomy Of I as their live drummer in January 2013.



He also recorded with Jive Junkies, and Afrock.



Marten van Kruijssen is studying at the Nederlandse Pop Academie NPAC (Dutch Pop Academy). He's also a drumteacher.