Marty Friedman Tokyo Jukebox
by Alissa Ordabai
Staff Writer
Do you remember how in your early teens you always wanted to share cool new music you’ve just discovered with everyone around you? With wealth of experience and credentials behind him, Marty Friedman still hasn’t lot this kind of youthful enthusiasm for all things fresh as well as for sharing newly discovered music with his fans. “As a musician who has a firmly established style it is really rare to have a strong new influence come along and give your musical and personal identity a brand new depth,” he writes in liner notes to his brand new album Tokyo Jukebox. “I was very lucky to be one of those rare cases.”
Tracks on this release – all covers – present a kind of crème de la crème of modern Japanese popular music. Here we have a selection ranging from unashamedly frank and up-fornt pop (“cheesy bubblegum” as Friedman calls it in his notes), to music which can be heard in Tokyo dance clubs, to covers of material which represents everything new and innovative in Japanese metal.
The opening track “Tsume Tsume Tsume” was originally written by Maximum the Hormone, a band which these days is in the avant-garde of Japanese metal. Sharply, at tear-away speed and with absolute virtuosity Friedman weaves his guitar parts into the thick texture of this track which constantly changes its speed and tempo, stopping just occasionally for a 10-second melancholy slow breathers only to resume this wild race, carried away by the fierce polyrhythmic rhythm section and his own excitement. The result are guitar parts which, like embroidery in golden thread, shine juxtaposed to the solid yet ever-changing structure of this little compositional gem.
Everyone knows that there are covers and there are covers, and on this album Friedman shows how the original can be given an entirely new life depending on the personality of the musician handling it. There are examples when he plays vocal parts on the guitar, where he changes tempo and speed of the originals, and where he even turns electronic tracks into perfectly arranged compositions where everything is performed with real instruments.
Virtuosic technique, his understanding on the material which Friedman approaches as an insider and not as a culture-surfing tourist, plus courage with which he turns this music into his own, i.e. guitar music, all make this record an incredibly exciting release to get into. Here we have an example of Friedman’s growth and development as a musician, and an illustration to how sometimes one person’s talent and vision can help two different cultures not only to interact, but also to understand themselves better.
Label: Mascot
Track Listing:
1. Tsume Tsume Tsume
2. GIFT
3. Amagigoe
4. Story
5. Polyrhythm
6. Kaeritakunattayo
7. TSUNAMI
8. Yuki No Hana
9. Eki
10. Sekai Ni Hitotsu Dake No Hana
11. Romance No Kamisama
12. Ashita He No Sanka
Hardrock Haven Rating : 8/10