Out now from guitarist Marty Friedman is the official video for ‘Shukumei’, a new single taken from his Tokyo Jukebox 3 album, that’s out now via The Players Club/Mascot Label Group.
Talking about the video Friedman said, “When I saw the girl group Perfume dancing to the ultra-progressive odd time signatures in their song ‘Polyrhythm’ live at The Budokan, it was one of the weirdest and most exciting combinations I had even seen. With that feeling in mind, I decided to combine girls dancing to ‘Shukumei’, a song with some of the mast bizarre and progressive guitar work on Tokyo Jukebox 3. It`s definitely in my personality to take the risk of confusing fans of guitar and fans of dance music, to try to bring some fun and life into what otherwise might be portrayed as a guitar showcase.”
Released in 2021, the record is the third in a series that began in 2009, with Tokyo Jukebox 2 following in 2011. The trilogy presents Friedman’s inspired performances to Japanese repertoire he’s chosen to cover. Friedman included ‘The Perfect World’, that he wrote, recorded and originally released in 2018. This is the only track on the album with vocals. He reflected, “Back then I did the song with Jean-Ken Johnny from Man With A Mission on vocals, and that was used as the main theme for the Netflix series B: The Beginning. On the day of release, the song went straight to the top of the Japanese iTunes chart.” This recording is a new, fresh interpretation with Alfakyun, one of Japan’s premier female J-Pop singers performing the vocals. “It’s really a self-cover,” said Friedman. “so it fits in with the idea of this being a covers album.”
Friedman also included ‘Japan Heritage Theme Song’, another of his own compositions on which he worked with the Tokyo Philharmonic orchestra. On Jukebox 3, Friedman takes J-Pop hits and offers his own charismatic interpretations of contemporary repertoire that includes LiSA’s ‘Gurenge’ and Official Hige Dandism’s ‘Shukumei’, alongside Da Pump’s dance track ‘U.S.A.’, Sekai No Owari’s ballad ‘Sazanka’, and the vocaloid hit ‘Senbonzakura’. Japanese old school standards, Zard’s ‘Makenaide’ and Every Little Things’s‘Time Goes By’ are also given the guitarist’s modern overhaul to round out the album’s track list to cover the full scope of his take on the Japanese music scene.
Born in Washington Marty D.C., Friedman first gained attention with the band Cacophony, that he founded with fellow guitarist, Jason Becker. They released two highly acclaimed albums and then he was recruited by Megadeth in 1990, appearing with them for the next decade. Contributing to Rust In Peace, Countdown To Extinction and the multi-platinum albums Youthanasia, Cryptic Writings, Hidden Treasures and Risk, alongside touring worldwide.
Since 2003, Friedman has lived in Tokyo where he has become a household name, even beyond the world of music. He’s appeared on over 700 Japanese TV shows of every variety, as well as motion pictures and commercials. He was also recently appointed an Ambassador of Japan Heritage by the Japanese Government. At the same time, he continued releasing his solo albums and touring them worldwide. The latest incarnation of his long-selling signature model guitar, Jackson`s MF-1, will be released this month. It is a brand-new Purple Cracked Mirror model, with a stunning design and ultramodern construction (For more information click here).
