If you had to pick an electric guitar player that Megadeth’s Kiko Loureiro would be unlikely to collaborate with on a song, Marty Friedman – who has had a tumultuous relationship with Megadeth leader Dave Mustaine since leaving the band at the end of the ‘90s – would probably land near the top of that list.
And yet, Loureiro has just released a new solo track, Imminent Threat, with a guest appearance from none other than Friedman.
"For the last five years, I've always been compared to Marty Friedman, and Marty Friedman is a great musician – not only a great guitar player but an amazing musician,” Loureiro said.
“And I'm a big fan of his solo work and Cacophony and, of course, other Megadeth years, and I had a chance to meet him two times and have great conversations about music and about life with him.
"I have some guest musicians, guest guitarists on my new album, and guess what? Marty Friedman is one of them.
"I'm so happy to have Marty Friedman. He did, of course, an amazing solo on one of my songs. So, thank you, Marty."
Imminent Threat is the second single from Loureiro’s forthcoming fifth solo album, Open Source.
Recently, Loureiro also posted his original audition tapes for Megadeth, showing him tackling Friedman songs like Holy Wars, Trust and Hangar 18 – one day after first learning how to play them.
For more information on Open Source, head to Loureiro's Indiegogo page.
Marty Friedman, meanwhile, was most recently spotted shredding up the fretboard in a demo for Fender's Japan-exclusive - and thoroughly desirable - Modern Series Telecaster.
