Most bands mark ten years with a compilation. Mardelas went back into the studio and played its catalogue again.

The Two Writers

Mardelas began in 2014. At its centre are two people: the singer Marina Hebiishi, who writes lyrics and music, and the guitarist Ikki Oikawa, who composes and arranges.

Hebiishi had been the vocalist of Destrose, the all-female metal band whose former members turn up all over Japanese heavy music. Haruna of LOVEBITES is another of them.

The first release was an independent single, “Daybreak / Phantasia,” on 8 October 2014.

The Major Label

The band moved fast. In 2015 it signed to NEXUS, the heavy music label of King Records, and released its first album, Mardelas I, on 22 April.

The albums since have kept the numbering. Mardelas II came out on 15 June 2016, Mardelas III on 16 May 2018 and Mardelas IV on 7 September 2022. An EP, Ground ZERO, appeared between the third and fourth, in May 2019.

The lineup changed around the two founders. The bassist Hisayuki Motoishi joined on 25 November 2017.

The Best-Of

In 2025 the band reached ten years on a major label. It announced a best album, and then did something unusual with it.

Brand New Best 2025 came out on 8 October 2025. It is a two-disc set of 22 songs chosen by the members. The songs were not simply collected. They were recorded again, remixed and given new arrangements. Each track carries the tag “2025 RELOADED.”

That is far more work than a compilation needs. It suggests a band that thinks its older songs deserve the players it has become.

The tour that followed went through Japan and included a date in Shanghai on 2 November 2025.

Still Touring

There was no pause after the anniversary. In April 2026 the band was out again on the Bounty Hunt Tour, and in the autumn it played three cities in eight days: Osaka on 26 September, Nagoya on 27 September and Yokohama on 3 October.

Why It Matters

A decade on a major label is a long time for a heavy metal band. Mardelas has done it with the same two writers and four numbered albums, and chose to prove the point by playing the old songs better.

Start with Brand New Best 2025, then Mardelas IV.