Former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman has gained a variety of pearls of knowledge all through his lengthy and profitable profession, and has spoken on the teachings he’d give his youthful self given the chance.

And there’s one piece of recommendation he’d definitely give: “I might in all probability say, ‘Calm down on all of the unlawful substances.”

“I don’t suppose I’d even say that, as a result of I bought all of it out of my system by the point I used to be 17,” he recollects in a brand new interview with YouTube channel The Neurotic Guitarist. “I used to be doing the whole lot I beloved, all of the medication, however acid was one which I by no means took.

Whereas Friedman notes that, within the ’70s and ’80s, acid – LSD – was extra related to the hippie neighborhood than the “punk rocker, exhausting rock, heavy metallic” neighborhood he was part of, a bunch of buddies satisfied him to offer it a go, leading to a foul acid journey that will develop into a turning level for Friedman’s musical profession.

“Folks have good journeys and folks have unhealthy journeys. And I believe what I had was a really, very, very unhealthy journey. I believed I used to be going to wind up being a psychological affected person if I ever got here down from it as a result of it was not going away.”

This expertise triggered Friedman to fully alter his perspective on his future in music. He provides, “Whereas I used to be up there, I used to be like, ‘If I ever survive this, I swear to God, I’m not going to do something however work on music and play music and develop into the most effective musician I will be. I’m not going to even take a sip of beer. ‘I’m not going to smoke a joint. I’m not going to do any extra Quaaludes, no extra coke, no nothing, all gone, the whole lot going instantly into music.’ And that’s mainly what I did.”

Friedman’s terrifying acid journey in the end turned a defining second in his life, pushing him to dedicate himself to his music pursuits. This dedication paid off, main him to worldwide acclaim as a guitarist and songwriter. Though that evening took an sudden flip, it in the end formed his future and set him on the trail to a profitable profession…