Hangar 18

Megadeth, 1990. Solo by Marty Friedman & Dave Mustaine.

Exotic scales at thrash speed.

The second half of Hangar 18 is essentially one long guitar duel between Marty Friedman and Dave Mustaine, with the two trading short leads over shifting riffs; Songfacts counts around eleven solos. Friedman wrote his parts after producer Mike Clink told him the song was about aliens and he should sound like outer space. His original solo was much longer and was cut down in editing. The exchange of styles, Friedman's exotic scales against Mustaine's aggressive attack, keeps the section surprising. Listen for the differences between the two players; Friedman's bends and unusual note choices stand out against Mustaine's more direct phrasing.

Hangar 18 by Megadeth is ranked #88 in our consensus of 79 guitar-solo lists. The solo is played by Marty Friedman & Dave Mustaine and the song was released in 1990. It appears on 7 lists, placing as high as #19 (DigitalDreamDoor).

The story of Hangar 18

Hangar 18 appears on Rust in Peace, Megadeth's fourth album and the first with guitarist Marty Friedman and drummer Nick Menza. Dave Mustaine is the sole credited writer, but the core of the music predates the band: he wrote an early version for his first group, Panic, under the title N2RHQ, a name styled like aircraft markings. Its opening chord progression has often been compared with Metallica's The Call of Ktulu, a piece Mustaine had helped write before he was fired from that band.

The lyric draws on UFO folklore about a secret building at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, supposedly used to store alien bodies and recovered craft. Mustaine linked the idea to the Roswell legend and has said his real target was government secrecy. MusicRadar reports that Menza helped shape the concept, and Mustaine has pointed to Beatles and Led Zeppelin touches in the opening, a Spanish-tinged break in the middle and an all-out twin-guitar finale.

Rust in Peace was made at Rumbo Recorders in Canoga Park between 1989 and 1990. Mike Clink began the sessions, cutting bass, drums and Friedman's guitar, before leaving to work on Guns N' Roses' Use Your Illusion records, after which engineer Micajah Ryan finished guitars and vocals with Mustaine. David Ellefson played a five-string Jackson bass tuned to drop D for the first half of the song while the guitars stayed in standard tuning.

Capitol issued Hangar 18 as a single on 4 February 1991, with an AOR radio edit of 3:17 beside the full 5:14 album cut. It reached number 26 in the UK and 25 in Ireland, and earned a Grammy nomination for Best Metal Performance. A video shot at the Scattergood Generating Station in California showed alien experiments and band members frozen in cryogenic tanks.

The solo

The second half of Hangar 18 is essentially one long guitar duel between Marty Friedman and Dave Mustaine, with the two trading short leads over shifting riffs; Songfacts counts around eleven separate solos. Friedman wrote his parts to fit the subject after producer Mike Clink told him the song was about aliens and he should play something that sounded like it came from outer space. That note changed how he approached composition, and he says he paid far closer attention to lyrics afterward. His original solo was much longer and was cut down in editing; he recalls wading through piles of two-inch tape on the studio floor. MusicRadar lists Jackson guitars for both players, a King V for Mustaine and a Kelly for Friedman.

Legacy

Hangar 18 is one of Megadeth's signature songs and a benchmark for thrash lead guitar. It was nominated for the Grammy for Best Metal Performance, won a Concrete Foundations award for top radio cut in 1991, and Guitar World has ranked its solo 21st among the greatest guitar solos. Billboard placed it fourth among Megadeth's best songs in 2018, and Louder ranked it third in 2022. Its appearance in Guitar Hero II introduced it to a new audience, and a sequel, Return to Hangar, followed in 2001.

Top 10 facts about Hangar 18

The song began in Mustaine's first band, Panic, under the working title N2RHQ.
Wikipedia
The lyric is based on a rumoured building at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base near Dayton, Ohio, said to hold alien remains or spacecraft.
Wikipedia
David Ellefson used a five-string Jackson bass in drop D for the first half of the track while the guitars remained in standard tuning.
Wikipedia
Producer Mike Clink told Marty Friedman to play something that sounded like it came from outer space because the song was about aliens.
Guitar Player
Friedman's solo was originally much longer and was edited down for the album.
Guitar Player
Songfacts counts roughly eleven guitar solos in the song.
Songfacts
Mike Clink left Rust in Peace partway through to produce Guns N' Roses' Use Your Illusion albums.
Wikipedia: Rust in Peace
Megadeth began opening shows with Hangar 18 in 2013, partly at the suggestion of Pantera drummer Vinnie Paul.
Songfacts
The music video was filmed at the Scattergood Generating Station in California and directed by visual effects supervisor Paul Stephen Boyington.
Wikipedia
A MIDI arrangement of Hangar 18 was used as music in the video game Doom II.
Songfacts

Live versions

Rude Awakening (Tucson and Phoenix) (2002) Recorded November 2001 in Arizona and paired with its sequel Return to Hangar.
Rust in Peace Live (Hollywood Palladium) (2010) Played as part of a complete performance of Rust in Peace for its 20th anniversary.
Show opener on tour (2013) Became Megadeth's regular set opener, a change suggested partly by Vinnie Paul.

Notable covers

Doralice (2015) Guitar-and-violin duo version on the Rusted Pieces EP of Rust in Peace covers.

In our lists

See Them Live — #28
Deep Cuts — #47
The Modern Canon: Best Since 1990 — #17
The 25 Greatest Metal Guitar Solos — #11
The 25 Greatest Thrash Guitar Solos — #5
The 1990s — #15
Twin Guitars & Harmonies — #8

Sources

What guitar was used on the Hangar 18 solo?

A jackson, according to widely reported accounts.

Where does Hangar 18 rank among the greatest guitar solos?

#88 in the GreatestSolos consensus of 79 published lists; it appears on 7 of them.

Who wrote Hangar 18?

Dave Mustaine is the credited writer; he first developed the song in his pre-Megadeth band Panic.

What album is Hangar 18 on?

It appears on Megadeth's 1990 album Rust in Peace.

Who plays the guitar solos on Hangar 18?

Marty Friedman and Dave Mustaine trade the solos in the song's long instrumental second half.

What is Hangar 18 about?

It refers to a rumoured facility at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base said to hold alien bodies and craft, and to government secrecy around UFOs.

Did Hangar 18 get a Grammy nomination?

Yes, it was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 34th Grammy Awards.