Titans of Creation

Thrash metal veterans Testamentwith their new album, these guys need no introduction so let’s get right into it.

Without introduction melodic riffs and pummelled drum fills set in the groovy pace of some killer new Testament material to a flying start. When the vocals join, it is clear the production of the record is going to be devastating with a crisp tightness that leaves the guitar and bass to obliterate with chunky riffs while the drums hammer out some ferocious hits, all backing up a slew of magnificently old school vocals. As somehow who really enjoyed their last album “Brotherhood Of The Snake” back in 2016, it’s great to see the band continuing in the groovy yet still respectably classic Thrash Metal vein.

Alongside the masterful rhythmic battery, it wouldn’t be a Testament record without some fantastic solos from Mr Skolnick, these are certainly delivered with emotive melody and buckets of gnarly shredding in glorious harmony. With the anthemic nature of the band intact, there is plenty of tracks on here that will have a crowd singing and pumping their fists to. This record punches in at nearly an hour, which perhaps might drag on a bit for some folks attention span, though I found due to the range of superb songwriting and catchy hooks, Testament definitely kept my attention.

It’s been a while since reviewing for a band of such magnitude in favour of more underground material that sometimes it is easy to assume the classics aren’t hitting as hard anymore, however Testament are a fine example that this is not the case. With fellow thrashers like Kreator unleashing some of their best work since the early days among their recent releases, this also rings true for these Bay Area maniacs who can still bang out brilliant thrash metal decades into their career with wonderfully crushing heaviness, epic musicianship and killer songwriting. There are even some big surprises like in the track “Cult Of Osiris”, Testament briefly give glimpses of black metal, something I never could have predicted.

Overall this album is a slab of Testament doing their thing and doing it marvellously. If you like Testament, then you will dig this new monstrously groovy tome of riffs. If you do not, then this isn’t anything to win you over, these guys haven’t suddenly changed and I, for one, am glad of that. Testament, keep doing what you do, there is a reason you’re at the top of the game for this stuff.

Written for www.nattskog.wordpress.com