Wednesday, May 21, 2014

"Inferno" by Marty Friedman

Oh Marty Friedman! おひさしぶりです! 


It has been a long time since I've personally thought about Marty Friedman.

I won't speak for you though. The last album he played on that I own I think is Cryptic Writings from 1997. I did see him perform with Megadeth on the Ozzfest in either 1997 or 1998, I forget precisely which year.

Well, where has Marty been for the past 14 years since leaving Megadeth? He has relocated to Japan and started  a solo career where he has released seven albums preceding this release.

I believe my favorite title from this era would have to be Tokyo Jukebox 2.


Marty
It became obvious very quickly that Friedman has lost nothing from this playing. It would also appear that in the years, he's gotten far better and his fingers were always more liquid than bone.

The one thing on this record that you've never heard from him on a Megadeth album is rhythm playing. Mustaine played it all and Marty's shown that this was unnecessary.

His riffs are just phenomenal. Thick and throaty and fully of piss and vinegar. My only complaint is that it would've been nicer had we gotten a bit more of those riffs before he went off into a blazing solo.

He still has preternatural skills on the guitar. The ability he displays is still a bit staggering, if not mindnumbing...but that's a very good thing.

His guitar tone is that standard modern metal sound: clear, articulate, full of sustain, and saturated in high gain and the chugs are twice as thick.

Marty's not the only fellow to be featured on this album. There is a long list of guest performers like Alex Laiho, Keshav Dhar, Jorgen Munkeby, David Davidson, and more.

There are surprises as well as the standard stuff. There is even a saxophone solo on one of the tracks. At which point it becomes a dual lead with the guitar.

All in all, if you're looking for a guitar record that will make you wonder how this much can come out of one person, this is it.

Release: 5/27/14
Genre: Metal
Label: Prosthetic Records
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Track list:
1. Inferno
2. Resin
3. Wicked Panacea (F. Rodrigo y Gabriela)
4. Steroid Head (F. Keshav Dhar)
5. I Can't Relax (F. Danko Jones)
6. Meat Hook (F. Jorgen Munkeby)
7. Hyper Doom
8. Sociopaths (F. David Davidson)
9. Lycanthrope (F. Alexi Laiho & Danko Jones)
10. Undertow (F. Gregg Bissonette & Tony Franklin)
11. Horros (co-written by Jason Becker)
12. Inferno (Reprise)


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