The Gathering

Testament's final studio album is quite an average one, although pretty good if compared to what came before it. On 'The Gathering' there is a 'supergroup' lineup of sorts, with Lombardo, DiGiorgio and Murphy among the two Testament regulars Billy and Peterson. By the premise alone, this would be an awesome album, in which each player would contribute their talents to create a masterpiece. However, it is a release that, while not bad, fails to stick out in any discernible way.

After the terrible 'Demonic' this is actually quite good. But compared to other thrash releases and metal releases in general this just reeks of mediocrity. It isn't even that much of a thrash record, as there is still a few groove songs present. The riffing doesn't really stick out as being anything brilliant, and everything has been done before. While some riffs are awesome (such as the ones in 'D.N.R.') there is so much averageness on display it just ruins the record. There isn't much in the way of soloing either, and although there are more than on 'Demonic' they don't make you crap your pants like Skolnick's did. They sound like they're there for the hell of it, as some songs would be better off without them. The drum work is quite good and should be coming from Lombardo, and he offers some pummeling rhythms. Chuck Billy's vocals are also quite good, and a clear step up from the half assed ones on 'Demonic'. While he has strayed away from his 'classic' thrash vocals he exhibited on the first album his vocal work on here is still more than competant. The growls are used in moderation while his superior clean singing rightfully takes up most of the songs.

Most of the songs are either good or bad, with the exception of the opening track and 'Legions of the Dead'. The riffs on here are simply amazing, and can hold up to what was being released in the 80s easily. Unlike some of the others, it stops when it should so it doesn't sound overlong. Chuck's vocals are excellent with some awesome Death Metal growling combined with his trademark clean vocals. 'Legions of the Dead', is the closest they ever got to Death Metal with a fast paced, death-ish riff underneath growled vocals. Unfortunately there are also some really bad songs as well. 'True Believer' drags on and on with annoying interludes in between, while 'Riding the Snake' is an example of a song which could simply be classified as "what the fuck?!". The ones in between just blend into each other, sounding like a blur most of the time due to the riffs not being distinctive enough.

'The Gathering' is a missed opportunity. Had the band at the time realised their full potential shown in the standout songs at the time of writing, this would be an awesome thrash record and the perfect way to end their career. However, what really happened is we got two great songs, two really bad ones and eight which are just plain average and don't sound different to each other. It's not bad, just irritating to think how good this could've been.