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| MARK MEDALEN | |
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Mark Medalen
plays an acoustic and a Telecaster guitar and shares the lead singing duties with
Andy. Born and raised in Olympia, WA, his earliest
and most influential education was listening to the records his
parents and family members collected. "All of my memories
involve music, as long as I can remember - riding around in my
Dad's '67 Camaro listening to the Beach Boys, Waylon Jennings,
and CCR. I also listened to a lot
of Springsteen, Haggard, and Willie Nelson when I was young.
It's a diverse mix, and I think that's what set the
pace for my musical influences later in life."
Mark started playing guitar at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, where he divided his time between studying video production and performing at the Buckboard Tavern during the week. Graduating (not quite with honors) with a Video Communications degree from Central in 1995, Mark came home to Olympia and immediately started looking for musicians with the same passion and drive he had for playing great music. It wasn't long before Broken Trail was born, and started performing in the local clubs. "I'm proud of this band, and how much we've accomplished in a dozen years. Time flies when we're having fun. The best thing that can happen to this band is to keep going, keep playing night after night." Mark's musical influences cross many genres and boundaries. His early years were spent listening to surf music and rockers like the Rolling Stones, Beach Boys and the Tex-Mex sounds of Los Lobos. But what really affected him was the outlaw country music of Waylon and Willie, Johnny Cash, Buck, and Merle. "I was 14 when I heard Dwight Yoakam's first record. It blew me away. Pete Anderson's guitar twang and Dwight's lyrics and vocal style definitely affected my own music in a positive way." Mark is one of the chief songwriters in the band. Broken Trail is currently in the studio working on their first CD of original music. Written, arranged, and performed by the band, the full-length disc is being co-produced by Broken Trail and Rickie Ray Heinzman. Look for it on iTunes and at all Trail shows in Fall 2008. Outside of the band, Mark works for the State of Washington during the week, and owns and operates a video production company in his "spare" time. Although most of his hobbies involve music and the band, he also enjoys photography, playing sports, riding motorcycles, and being with family and friends. |
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© 2008 BROKEN TRAIL |
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