Year: 2006

Marty Friedman made his mark as one of the foremost shredders of the ’80s when he teamed up with guitarist Jason Becker in Cacophony.

He achieved greater celebrity after joining Megadeth in late 1990 as the group’s third lead guitarist. In 10 years with the band, he recorded three albums while continuing his solo work and recording three discs of his own.

Friedman’s solo work is characterized by a variety of exotic, new-age influences and interesting textures, in contrast to the full-on assault he demonstrates with his metal groups. VG caught up with Friedman at his home in Japan to talk about his new disc, Music For Speeding (Favored Nations) and playing with Japanese artist Aikawa Nanase.

Vintage Guitar: In what ways was making Music For Speeding different from your previous solo work?
Marty Friedman: I engineered it myself, which was kind of insane, being that I’m not an engineer.

As I started to get better at it, I got into making loops and sequences, sampling guitar, and doing cool stuff like that. So I thought I’d engineer it then get great people to mix it.

I got some great people to record a few days of lead guitar for me, so I could just concentrate on playing lead guitar parts, but I did all the other engineering myself. It took me four months to engineer it and I’m really happy, and I learned a ton about recording in the process. It definitely was satisfying.

Did you use a variety of setups for the tracking?
Yes. I used a Roland GT-6 for a lot of the scratch tracks, then wound up keeping some of the scratch tracks because the tones I tweaked from the GT-6 were sounding kind of fresh.

The main amp was a Crate 300-watt model which is relatively new. I used the prototype, and it was the coolest thing I ever recorded through. I used it for most of the solos and clean parts. I didn’t expect it to have such a glassy clean sound out of a rocking amp, but it surprised me. I put it up against a bunch of other amps in the studio and I pretty much ended up using the Crate.

I had a bunch of guitars in the studio – Gibsons, Jacksons, Ibanezes, and Fenders. At that time, I was basically playing anything I could get my hands on to get the sound I wanted.

On the record, there are lots of flavors and lots of guitars – 30 or 40.

For effects, I used stompboxes by Electro-Harmonix, like the Zipper. I have two Zippers and they’re great. I also used some Japanese prototype pedals and the Roland GT-6. Really, it was anything I could get my hands on. I morphed and mutated a lot of the effects inside the computer as I recorded using plug-ins and some actual recording tricks to kind of make the sounds a little bit more interesting. I was cutting them up, flipping them backwards, and stretching them out. I was doing that kind of stuff rather than only using traditional stompboxes and effects. So I just played normally and then made it a little bit different inside the computer.

Describe the songwriting process and how the material came together.
The songs started with a basic melody that I just heard and either wrote down or tried to record so I didn’t forget.

Basically, everything was based around a melody or a few melodies I wind up embellishing until they become a song or a piece of music. If I don’t have a guitar handy, I just have to just make do. A lot of times I just hum into a tape recorder.

The song “Lust For Life” was done without a guitar. I just kind of sang it into a little voice recorder. Then when I did pick up a guitar, I learned it from that.

What is your main guitar these days?
I’m not one of those guys who has a favorite guitar. A guitar is just a tool.

I’ve been borrowing guitars from Ibanez for sessions and all the live stuff I’ve been doing. I just want a good work tool that stays in tune and sounds good. It doesn’t really go beyond that at all, boringly enough! I wish I had a Lucille story.

Do you prefer a tremolo or non-tremolo guitar?
Non-tremolo is pretty much what I’ve used forever, and probably what I’ll continue to use.

Tell us about your current endeavors in Japan.
I’m playing in a band with singer Aikawa Nanase. She’s a massive artist here. The music is hard-rock oriented, but the producer is hip and modern, and does a lot of cool stuff [similar to] what Garbage does, but maybe a little bit more dancey and with happier melodies. It’s definitely guitar rock – very aggressive, fast hard rock and kind of modern pop with great melodies. I’m so happy to be playing with an artist like her.

I’ll also be recording three songs in Los Angeles with another Japanese artist, Sera Masanori. And I just did a bunch of seminars for Musician’s Institute in Japan. That’s what got me a visa to be here.

How does the music differ between Japan and the U.S.?
It seems there’s a bigger demand for more varied kinds of music here. There’s more music, and that means there’s more quality, because the standard is really high. Domestic music in Japan outsells international music by about 90 percent to 10 percent; U2, Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Metallica, and those types of artists make up about 10 percent of what is sold over here.

It’s absolutely a massive scene here, and it’s not unusual for a Japanese artist to sell a million copies. Aikawa Nanase has sold 12 million records in Japan.

And the music is completely different from American music. They borrow from American music to some extent, but the sense of creating a melody is very different from in America. Because people intend to sing these songs at home or in karaoke, the melodies have to be relatively easy to understand and really sink into your head after the first listen.

I think it’s an art to create a melody that’s easy to pick up and understand right away. It’s a lot harder than it sounds. Where do you see the most change in yourself as a musician? It’s easier to play now, than maybe ever. If I have an idea in my mind, it comes right out on guitar, whether it’s simple or difficult. I think there’s a lot less anxiety in playing and more just picking up the guitar and playing it without really even thinking. It seems to get easier the more I play.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Oct. ’03 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.

“Renaissance,” “Medieval,” “Baroque,” and other musical terms are applicable to the unique modern-day efforts of the most recent aggregation that counts legendary guitarist Ritchie Blackmore as a member.

Along with partner/singer/lyricist Candice Night and other associates, the combo known as Blackmore’s Night has released four albums since its inception in the mid 1990s: Shadow of the Moon (’97), Under a Violet Moon (’99), Fires at Midnight (’01), and a live double album, Past Times With Good Company, which debuted in February ’03 (all on the Steamhammer/SPV label).

Not only has Blackmore’s Night nurtured Ritchie’s longtime love of ancient musical genres, the band also uses many ancient-style instruments in its presentation.
In a recent conversation with Vintage Guitar, the veteran player enthusiastically brought us up to date on his decision to head down different musical paths.

Vintage Guitar: When we conversed in 1997, you alluded to going in the direction of what Blackmore’s Night is doing. But how would you explain your decision to someone accustomed to hearing you play a Stratocaster – loudly?
Ritchie Blackmore: Well, it’s not very different. When I first heard Medieval/Renaissance music, the harmonic structure was very similar to rock and roll. It’s quite easy to imagine something like the “Smoke on the Water” riff being played by medieval instruments from the 1500s, like shawms. It’s very similar music, and what I’m playing on the acoustic guitar is not that dissimilar to what I’ve played on electric.

For instance, back in the days of Rainbow, when I played songs like “Temple of the King” or “Rainbow Eyes” on the electric guitar, it still had a Medieval/Renaissance influence; a “minstrel” influence. The only difference is the volume.

Is it fair to say that each of the three studio albums became more diverse? The title track from Fires at Midnight sounds like it has a Middle Eastern or Turkish influence…
It’s hard to say. I know that when I started Shadow of the Moon, I wanted to stick strictly to acoustic guitar. But as it has progressed, I’ve kind of gone back to playing electric and acoustic guitar – whatever fits the bill.

But in the beginning, I wanted to make it very “woody” and organic. I tried to steer clear of playing any electric solos, although I did on one or two tracks. It had gotten to the point six years ago where I had to put the electric guitar down, because I was kind of boring myself.

The (“Fires at Midnight”) melody line was originally written in the 1200s by King Alphonse X of Spain. I’d kind of envisioned a witches’ meeting in Germany, which is where the Walpurgis Night legend came from.

One of the most “electric” tracks so far was “Written In The Stars,” but even it has a horn chart.
That was taken from a Tchaikovsky concerto; the “Swan Lake” piece. It’s very famous, and I’ve always liked it. So it was very easy to introduce into that song. It was almost tongue-in-cheek, like we’d done a disco version of it. Some people asked, “Why is it on the CD? It’s so out of-place.” And yet other people would tell me it’s their favorite song.

And speaking of tongue-in-cheek, the intro to your cover of Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are A-Changin’” is a direct cop from Sonny and Cher’s “I Got You, Babe.”
That is exactly what we wanted to do! (chuckles). It was done on purpose; we wanted the oboe to do it exactly like “I Got You, Babe.” I tell people we’re trying to copy Sonny and Cher.

The new live album was recorded in the Netherlands. Have England and the European continent been more receptive to Blackmore’s Night?
Yes, they have. But I think it’s more the agencies and people involved when we’ve toured who have been receptive.

In the United States, promoters are bit more skeptical of this kind of music. But the people in America are just as “into” this music as the people in Europe, even though in Europe, I think they’ve been a bit blasé about the history they have, yet they know about that type of music, and they like it.

I get the feeling Americans look at it like a fairy tale, with castles; I feel like the Americans get more excited about the music than even the Europeans. We’re about to start touring in America, but we’re always working in Europe.

I think Americans have been left out because promoters can sometimes be a little bit lazy over here. If they know something’s an instant sell, they’ll book it into rock clubs. But we don’t want to play rock clubs. We don’t have to play in a castle, but would like to play in some place with a sort of special feel, like a big stone church. Logistically, you could get into some problems, but this music is special.

The mix on the live album is fuller than some might expect.
We had three dates that we were going to record, but ended up with only one due to equipment problems. The one we got in Holland has all the mistakes, as well (chuckles).

Let’s discuss some of the instruments you played on the new live album. Isn’t the oval-shaped 12-string instrument on the cover a mandola?
Yes, it is. Most of the time, I use a similar tuning to a guitar. Other times, I’ll tune down, or do a Medieval tuning in A-D-A-D; sort of a drone tuning. It’s made by Freshwater, a Scottish builder; I think he only turns out three or four a year. It projects very well. I also use a Mid-Missouri mandolin.

As for guitars, I’ve been playing a special Alvarez-Yairi made for me. There’s a Fender Telecaster acoustic/electric; I think they only made them about six months, which is a shame; they’re not bad guitars. I use that with a synthesizer on “Shadow of the Moon” and “The Clock Ticks On” to get a fuller sound. I use Lakewood guitars more in the studio.

And I’ve been playing the hurdy gurdy for a couple of years. It has two chromatic octaves and a wheel that you turn that acts like a violin bow against the strings, which are made of gut. It gets a constant sound as the wheel revolves.

Comments about other ancient-style instruments that have appeared on your recordings, such as the shawm and the cornamuse?
The shawm is a wind instrument that Candice plays on “The Clock Ticks On.” The cornamuse is heard on “Mid-Winter’s Night.” And it’s funny – I don’t collect guitars; I collect shawms, and I can’t play a note on them! Candice does very well, though.

There are token covers of a Deep Purple song (“Soldier of Fortune”) and a Rainbow song (“16th Century Greensleeves”) on the live album. Many rock bands will play mostly electric, and will do a short acoustic “unplugged” segment in the middle of their performance. It sounds like your band did the reverse, as “16th Century Greensleeves” is about the only fully electric song on the album…
We do a 21/2 hour set, and most of it is “electro-acoustic,” but we throw in four or five heavy rock songs. “16th Century Greensleeves” is one, but we also do “Written in the Stars,” “Writing On The Wall,” and others.
I take out the Strat and play loud, which is kind of tricky onstage, because you’ve had an acoustic balance in the sound instead of a “heavy” balance… although it’s not really purely acoustic because we run through amplifiers.

The title track of the live album is also on Under a Violet Moon, and is credited to King Henry VIII, of all people.
It’s a very popular traditional song; it’s credited to Henry VIII, although maybe somebody in his court wrote it, and he chopped off their head. It’s always been one of my favorite tunes from the old, traditional repertoire. Using it as the title track fit it with what we were trying to convey; having a good time with friends.

It would seem a natural move for the band to do soundtracks; have you ever considered such?
Yes, we have; that would be very time-consuming, but a lot of the films that come out seem to have more-popular bands playing rock and roll – AC/DC, Aerosmith, U2, whatever. So far, this kind of music hasn’t been used in any films, which is a pity. I’ve been to see certain movies, like Elizabeth, which is a brilliant film, and I couldn’t believe that they actually played the correct music! I suppose I’m a purist when it comes to listening. When I’m playing, it’s more like I’m interpreting.

What do you envision in your musical future?
I just want to go on playing the music that appeals to me. In the old days, of course, you had certain obligations with the big record companies, and you had to play within that “box.” But in this project, we can basically do what we want, including cover versions of Bob Dylan songs, or whatever. It’s up to us, and I’m very happy with that.

I don’t know if anybody else would want to be into what we’re doing (chuckles), but there are bands doing it even more historically correct, with proper instruments. It seems there are an awful lot of bands playing the same type of music – blues, jazz, or straightaway pop – and that’s it. I never hear anything particularly new; it’s good music, but I’ve heard it before. What we’re doing seems to be generating some excitement among those who hear us, and that’s nice to know.

This article originally appeared in VG‘s Sep. ’03 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.