Jim Martin

Jim Martin supplied crushing heavy metal guitar riffs that formed a vital force in Faith No More’s sonic identity throughout his membership, which lasted from the early 1980s until he departed in 1993. Born July 21, 1961, in Oakland, California, he started playing guitar as a teenager while modeling his approach on Black Sabbath, Pink Floyd, and Led Zeppelin. One of his earliest groups, EZ Street, brought him into contact with future Metallica bassist Cliff Burton and future Faith No More drummer Mike Bordin. The three became close friends and remained so even after Burton and Bordin moved on to separate projects. When Bordin assembled a new wave/alternative/experimental band in the early 1980s with keyboardist Roddy Bottum and bassist Billy Gould, Martin was invited to add his heavy guitar to the lineup. Originally called Faith No Man, the group later changed its name to Faith No More. It first recorded for independent Mordam Records, then signed with Slash Records, and worked with two vocalists—Chuck Mosley (1985–88) and Mike Patton (1989–98). The Patton-era configuration proved most successful, producing alterna-metal classics The Real Thing (1989) and Angel Dust (1992). Martin also appeared briefly in the 1991 film Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey. Longstanding friction among the members culminated in a mutual parting of ways once sessions began for the follow-up to Angel Dust, prompted by artistic differences. After several quiet years, Martin launched Behemoth, which developed into his own solo project featuring Brent Weeks and Joe Cabral. Their debut album, Milk and Blood, appeared in 1997 as a Europe-only release. In 1996 he joined Metallica for an all-star radio jam, contributing to their cover of Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Tuesday’s Gone,” later included on the 1998 album Garage Inc. Late in 1998, reports suggested he had joined the death metal band Fang on a full-time basis.