Cocophony - Speed Metal Symphony

Although I should admit to being biased in favour of this album due to it being my first neo-classical one, and as a result one which is memorable for me, I think that any amount of praise cannot be superfluous. Taking into account that Marty Friedman was a guitarist with real talent and individuality and Jason Becker was a young virtuoso, and they both had a classical grounding, the Marty/Becker duo were certainly not short of skill. Marty always tried to outdo Jason's speed, and Jason always tried to outdo Marty's "weird sense of harmony", resulting in two young guitar shredding virtuosos playing at the top of their ability, and the material on SMS confirms their greatness. The review may focus more on Marty than Jason, which is justified in the fact that Marty wrote the songs, and did the majority of the guitar playing. I cannot elaborate much on the vocals because they are all meaningless eighties metal cheese and sang very poorly, but the guitars and drums are superb throughout.

01.] "Savage"
From the very first ten seconds of this song, you are assured that this album is going to be batting for the right side. The intro riff is heavy eastern background, on top of which is some great neo-classical lead, played by Marty and Becker at the same time. There is a brilliant solo in the middle of the song, displaying some of Marty's most creative techniques among Becker's ability, and a signature Marty trailer solo. Savage is a fantastic 80's neo-classical song, and if you learn to live with the singing, (which is quite easy because Peter Marrino does not try anything flashy), then this makes for an all time classic. Just MAGNIFICENT!

02.] "Where My Fortune Lies"
A seemingly messy song at first impressions, but Jason's lightning intro arpeggios are just muddied by the lacklustre recording. Some of the most atrocious singing in the album, but still somehow amusing and even fitting at times for it's lifeless quality. This song is not pretty but has the making of a classic through Marty's disregard in the commercial properties of the song when recording it. It is very messy, but has skill at the heart of it; in my opinion a hidden treasure.

03.] "The Ninja"
Beautiful acoustic introduction with Japanese influences leading to the most extreme Japanese song ever played by Marty; it sounds like he has a fixation with dark Japanese sound from his childhood and is letting all of his ideas materialise. This is a solid epic with a shockingly original middle section that I have not even heard copied, (well who the hell could play those notes as well as Marty?)

04.] "Concerto"
Becker really gets to show us what he is made of in this beautiful instrumental neo-classical piece. This is the lightest song on the album, and shows that the guys are not really devils from the darkest abysses of the ocean; it really showcases their classical training.

05.] "Burn The Ground"
Mind-blowing intro riff sets the way for a great song, once a minute or so of the usual cheesy metal verses are out of the way. This song is a tour-de-force from both players, showing the best of Becker, and the most perfectly chosen and played notes from Friedman. The middle solo shows some amazing playing, and just when you think it's all over, another load of arpeggio shredding and harmonising is executed. The virtuosity does not stop here.

06.] "Desert Island"
The best song in the album in terms of structure and catchyness, desert island also has one of the most intriguing solos of the album. There is a particular clean section with delay just before the solo which deserves a firm mention, which gives more insight into Marty's influences of, ., your guess is the equal of mine! Desert island really sets a scene, and is probably named due to Marty growing up in Hawaii, just showing that his take on Hawaii as an inspiration does not coincide with the ugly clichés of the volcanic mount. What an OUTSTANDINGLY GOOD song.

07.] "Speed Metal Symphony"
Although many people criticise the song for having no direction and being the sum of it's components, well I say who gives a ****! Great fun to listen to the duo shredding away through neo-classical and Japanese runs, leading to more great harmonising work from the two of them, another epic dark Japanese section, and a final definitive Marty Friedman solo. An unusual but brilliant end to a truly inspirational and significant piece of work from Friedman and Becker, never having been copied to any mentionable standard, and never having been paralleled in terms of strange metal harmonies.

The amount of preparation put into every note by Marty Friedman when writing this album, originally intended as a solo album, makes this impossible to beat at it's own style. This is Marty at his best, and in my opinion, Marty's influence on Becker makes this some of Becker's greatest ever work. The criticism of the album is very prominent; the singing, but just enjoy the brilliance of the ample lead sections that compile one of the greatest metal guitar albums ever recorded. Atma Anur does a studding job with the drums throughout the album, and although the production is far from great, the songs are classics.

Ratings and Wrap Up:
9.4
Hot Spots: "Savage", "Burn the Ground", Desert Island"
Bottom Line: All time metal guitar fan classic

Review by Edd-

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