Some History:

I started playing guitar when I was 10years old. For about 5years I consciencious followed my weekly classes of classical guitar, but it was clear I wanted more than that. I wanted to get into the electrical guitar art when I saw guitarists as Michael Schenker, Randy Rhoades, Adrian Vandenberg and Alex Lifeson on the stage. As soon as I turned 16, I bought a small Peavey amp and a secondhand Gibson SG (fake, but sounding great) guitar. I soon started improvising lead melodies and the hunger for more grew. The word got around and soon the local hardrock band 'Virus' contacted me to join. We mainly covered songs from UFO, MSG, Rush, Saga. The band was a good platform for my first live performances and to get past the initial stage frights of a fledgeling musician. In that period, I also started teaching guitar to a couple of friends of mine. After this band, I played and jammed in a long series of other bands all over Belgium (mainly coverbands ranging from Progressive HardRock over covers from U2, Anouk to even Astor Piazzola-stuff) and I continued my search for my own style. During all those years, I encountered a lot of interesting people and musicians, such as Ron Huisen (Tone Master of Line6) and the Line6 product developers at R&D in Los Angeles, Robert Godin (Founder of Godin Guitars - in Frankfurt), Mike Portnoy (Dream Theater - at a Meet&Greet @ Piens Music Center), Stewart Copeland (The Police - at a Meet&Greet @ Piens Music Center), Eric Sardinas (backstage after a concert with Steve Vai in the AB,Brussels), Jef Campitelli / Galen Henson (Satriani), but the most memorable one will always be the meeting with my ultimate Guitar Hero: Mr. JOE SATRIANI himself (backstage after a superb concert in Amsterdam in 2002) - a truly unforgettable experience to shake the hand of the Grand Master and to talk for about half an hour on our common interest (thanks again Joe for the 'pinch harmonics' tip). 

Some Personal Thoughts :

Wandering through the many MySpace and Facebook profiles, I encounter a lot of great guitartalents and musicianship. People trying hard to be as creative and innovative as possible. However, talent doesn't matter if there's no honesty, people should demonstrate what they are and what they do without false pretentions, people will know if you're offering your art with sincerity or if you are trying to be someone that you are not. To me, real guitar talent lies in creative melody and finess, not in shredding technique. In any case, if you are convinced that music is your life, then go for it and take it as it comes, no matter what people think about your vision or perspective, you don't have to please everybody. Follow your ideas, plans and what your heart and mind tell to you. Try to be diverse and don't get wrapped in just one genre, style, band or project. If something doesn't work or you do not like the result, move on for some other options. It's always good to be a bit patient and not try to run before learning to walk, go little by little, keep the pace that works for you being totally confident on your possibilities. It's all about to keep close to the instrument and being constant, if you trust and be passionate with it, something will happen. There should be just fun playing, being glad doing what you love and don't forget we are only human beings before musicians or whatever. Moreover, many times when we talk about guitarists sounds, we rather focus and zoom in on the gear they use. To me, it is better to pay more attention on their actual voice and musical vocabulary (phrasing, feel, note choice, harmony voicings): Having a decent guitar and a great amp is sometimes better than having a Gibson Les Paul Custom plugged into a cheap and crappy 15Watts amp, so think first about a really good amplifier. Remember that the best rig in the world won't play instead of you, having an Ibanez JS Chrome Boy won't make you play or sound like the Satch, first of all and most important: practice a lot, develop dynamics, clear musical ideas and a good connection between your fingers and the strings. The tone comes from the way your fingers fret the notes and the way your pick attacks the strings, from there you can tweak the final sound, shaping your amp EQ or adding your guitar effects. All I am trying to do with my own music is mash together chord changes that affect me, emotionally, the way other people's music has done to me many, many times before. I am trying not to sound too much like any one else, overriding influences - I am rather trying to take elements from some of my favorite artists and combine those elements with some of my own wack melodic sensibilities and trying to create something sort-of unique in the process.

Some Philosophy:

We musicians are merely antennae: keep yours shiny and finely tuned, Keep your receptors clean and forever open. To quote Albert Einstein:" If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music." ...and he also said... "I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world" ... "Whoever undertakes to set himself up as a judge of Truth and Knowledge is shipwrecked by the laughter of the gods."

My Gear:

I play Paul Reed Smith (PRS) Guitars on Line6 gear:

• My Guitars: PRS (Paul Reed Smith) Weststreet Ltd. 1980 reissue Natural Finish, a 24-fret (tremelo) private stock quality beauty with African Mahogany top (sapele, artist grade wood)/neck, brazilian rosewood fretboard, curly maple headstock with abalone dragon inlays on headstock and top; PRS Modern Eagle I Singlecut Natural Finish upgraded and customised with personalised brazilian rosewood accessories ; PRS CU22 McCarty Amber Brazilian Limited run N°90 of 500 with brazilian rosewood, fretboard, neck, headstock, knobs and PU frames ; PRS Modern Eagle Abalone (full option Modern Eagle including tremelo, brazilian rosewood neck,brazilian rosewood headstock and fretboard, flamed maple top, fully handcrafted - a real collector's item); I use 'Elixir' strings (0.010->0.046) ;
• My Amps & Stompboxes: Line6 Vetta II Head (the greatest Modelling amp ever build, yeah !) ; Line6 Speaker Cabinet 300W ; Line6 FBV Floorboard ; Line6 Echopark Tonecore Digital Delay ; Sennheiser Wireless 1100series ; Rack with Behringer Euro UB1204FX-Pro + Zoom RFX-1000 Multi-effects/Digital Reverb ; Line6 TonePort UX2 (signed by the Line6 R&D developers - Yeah !), AKG studio recording gear ; Boss RC2 Loop Station ; eBow ; slide guitar bottleneck ; my daily practising fingers.

My main influences:

Classical music and progressive metal, jazz and rock. I like composers such as Alan Silvestri,John Williams,Danny Elfman,Eliott Goldenthal,Thomas Newman,Harry Gregson Williams, Al diMeola, Joe Satriani, Guthrie Govan and bands like Dream Theater, King Crimson, Extreme, Queen, Toto, Rush, Souljourners, Saga, Circa:, Foo Fighters, U2, The Police, etc. My Credo: I get inspired from life and from my experiences, both good and bad. As I grow older and encounter more and more, my music will reflect that and continuously advance. If your art doesn't evolve, you aren't living. Or to quote Patanjali: "When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds. Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be." My Philosophy: We never have any guarantees as to how long we are allowed to hang around here on Earth: Some outlast others by a long shot, while others never get the opportunity to really get a good start at it. What it all boils down to is it often ends on us when we least expect it to. For that reason we must be prepared for it when it does happen because you just don't know when that will be. Getting older really stinks sometimes, but it's going to happen no matter what. There are so many things which are important to look after in order to be responsible with our life's work. I can honestly say that I have failed miserably in many things, yet there are a few things in which I have triumphed and have a great sense of accomplishment for: My family, my career, my friends ! 

Movies I like:

TV Shows I like:

Lifestyle magazines, Prison Break, CSI, Lost, Heroes, 4400, 24, Tennis coverage of Federer and Henin matches 

Heroes:

Joe Satriani, Guthrie Govan, John Petrucci (Dream Theater), Robert Fripp (King Crimson), Eric Johnson, Steve Vai, Tommy Emmanuel

Books:

The Da Vinci Code, Fingerprints of the Gods, The Silmarillon, Stephen King literature