Marty Friedman of the thrash metal supergroup ‘Megadeath’ was born on December 8, 1962 in Washington D.C. Today Friedman is one of the most recognised and influential players in the genre. Friedman is known for his use of arpeggios and different styles of customised and exotic scales.
Friedman is a five time Grammy award nominee, he has been awarded with 27 gold and platinum records from across the globe and has played in front of 140, 000 people at a headlining gig in Brazil, to name just a few of the highlights from this monster of metal’s resume.
Friedman began his career as a solo artist and as a member of a neo-classical metal band named ‘Cacophony’, with whom he toured the U.S. and Japan releasing two records along the way. In his time with ‘Cacophony’, Friedman, and fellow guitarist Jason Becker began to get noticed as players with serious talent. ‘Cacophony’ ended in early 1990, though their influences can still be heard in guitar playing styles to this day.
The end of one band saw the beginning of a new for Friedman. After receiving a tip, Friedman auditioned for the band ‘Megadeath’ and though he was initially rejected for his hairstyle, Friedman joined the band in February of 1990.
Friedman’s transition into ‘Megadeath’ was smooth. He managed to adapt his playing to the sound of the band and their first release as a unit– ‘Rust in Peace’ went on to become one of the all time thrash metal classics. During his time with the band, Friedman and Megadeath would sell ten million records worldwide and release five studio albums before Friedman left the band to focus on his solo career in January 2000.
Friedman produced, engineered, wrote and played guitar on his 2002 solo album, `Music For Speeding` and his 2006 release titled ‘Loudspeaker’ received critical acclaim and has been likened to his first solo record, 1988’s ‘Dragons Kiss’.
In the years since his time at ‘Megadeath’ Friedman has moved to Tokyo and become a celebrity in Japan as both a music star and television personality.