In a new interview with Greg Prato for Consequence, former Megadeth guitarist, Marty Friedman, discusses his current US tour with Queensrÿche, living in Japan, his friendship with Jason Becker, and more. And excerpt follows:

Greg Prato: Is it exciting to be returning to the States to tour with Queensrÿche?

Marty Friedman: "The focus of myself and my band at this time and putting that Megadeth/Budokan thing in the middle of it just kind of added to the excitement. So, I’m just very high off seeing the people’s faces at Budokan and the tears and screaming. Fans put a lot into a certain moment like that, and us and the band, we know that’s there, but we’re just trying to put on a good performance. But the fans have their own individual experiences that go with listening to Megadeth for so many years. So, they get that, and to watch that unfold, it really is a big adrenaline rush for me. Adding that to my solo tour that starts [March 3rd] in America, it’s just fantastic.

"And my band, they’re all Megadeth fans, so they’re just totally pumped and we’re excited about that. We’re really excited about bringing what we’ve been doing in Japan to America for the first time since the pandemic. And this time, my band is all Japanese, and we’re doing a lot of the stuff we did on our Japanese tour. We just did the biggest tour that I’ve ever done in Japan – 17 shows, which is unheard of in Japan, really. And the band is just so on fire to play in America together. To get out of the country … I’ve toured three times in Japan since the pandemic started, and haven’t left the country since then. Nobody has really toured outside of Japan much. On one album doing three tours, that’s kind of stretching it.

"So finally, we get to tour America for Tokyo Jukebox 3. People in America are finally going to hear those songs live — as well as a lot of my catalog stuff that I haven’t done. We’re just completely pumped. And Queensrÿche is a super band — I look forward to being on the same stage with them. Their music is so different from ours. Fans of our music and fans of their music are going to discover something new. It’s going to be a great time for all."

Read more at Consequence.

Friedman is direct support on the Queensrÿche tour. The itinerary below includes some Marty Friedman headline shows (#):

March
9 - San Antonio, TX - The Vibes Event Center*
10 - Houston, TX - Scout Bar*
11 - Dallas, TX - House Of Blues*
12 - Midland, TX - La Cienda Event Center*
14 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theater*
16 - Sacramento, CA - Ace Of Spades*
17 - Las Vegas, NV - Counts Vampd#
18 - Los Angeles, CA - Whisky A Go Go#
19 - Anaheim, CA - House Of Blues*
21 - Portland, OR - Crystal Ballroom*
22 - Seattle, WA - The Neptune Theater*
24 - Englewood, CA - Gothic Theater*
25 - Kansas City, MO - The Truman*
26 - St. Louis, MO - Delmar Hall*
28 - Milwaukee, WI - The Rave*
29 - Ft. Wayne, IN - The Clyde*
31 - Chicago, IL - Concord Music Hall

April
1 - Grand Rapids, MI - The Intersection*
2 - Detroit, MI - St. Andrews Hall*
4 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall*
5 - McKees Rocks, PA - Roxian Theater*
7 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium*
8 - Huntington, NY - The Paramount*
10 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza*
11 - Baltimore, MD - Baltimore Soundstage*
12 - Charlotte, NC - The Underground*
14 - Nashville, TN - Brooklyn Bowl*
15 - Atlanta, GA - Heaven at Masquerade*
16 - St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Landing*

* Queensrÿche date
# Headline date

(Photo - PFA Media)