It should have been the Big Five

Thrash pioneers Testament didn't get the break they deserved. Their first album, The Legacy, arrived on the heels of the greatest movement in metal history, and despite their accomplished and enviable career, the Bay-area thrash icons are overshadowed by Slayer, Anthrax, Metallica and Megadeth. Their fate is not unlike Stone Temple Pilots, who could trump most current rock bands but were bested in their heyday by Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Alice in Chains and Soundgarden. However, in 2008 Testament are a thriving, boundary-pushing outfit that's more capable of putting out a really heavy record than most of their peers or followers. Case in point: The Formation of Damnation.


Testament attempt to ease the shock of how great their comeback actually is by kicking off the album with a suspense-building, minute-long intro, but seconds into 'More than Meets the Eye' it's clear that Testament are not playing the part of the 20something thrash band, releasing toothless alternative-inspired metal or spitting out tolerable/inferior remakes of their glory years. On Formation of Damnation, Testament sound contemporary without leaping on to any bandwagon, recalling Lamb of God's metalcore more than Slayer's thrash. Guitar wizard Alex Skolnick, appearing on his first Testament record since the Bush Sr. era, sounds eager to rock out and newly adventurous, turning in hooks and solos with the fluidity of his surprisingly excellent jazz trio on 'Henchman Ride' and 'The Persecuted Won't Forget.' The entire band sounds like they've spent the last ten years developing their chops while the world fanned Testament's flames--the furious 9/11 rant 'The Evil had Landed' is a strong reminder of the state of the country shortly before the President erased all reason to sympathize with us, and 'Dangers of the Faithless' and 'Killing Season' are stimulating (if not too original) takes on the US political situation.


Singer Chuck Billy, a true attestation of "What doesn't kill you...," performs more forcefully than ever in Testament's career, mastering death growls and singing (!) more than most singers who attempt either can. Somehow, he never gets devoured by former Slayer drum virtuoso Paul Bostaph, who's more at home propelling Skolnick's leads than he was saving Dave Lombardo's seat. It's no hyperbole to say that Formation of Damnation is one of the best albums of Testament's career--less "welcome back" and more "where did these guys come from?" Not band for the thrash metal Eric Burdon & the Animals.