Metal fans certainly got a good amount of music in 2005 as it seemed to be a great year for Metal Reunion releases. We first saw Judas Priest as a fully reunited with Halford lineup tour the world and not long after that word came down that the 1985 lineup of Anthrax would reunite and tour as well. It was only a matter of time before we would find the original lineup of Testament doing the same thing. That's right you would now be able to own a new recorded concert of the classic Testament members: Chuck Billy, Alex Skolnick, Greg Christian, Eric Peterson and Louie Clemente (also joined by John Tempesta, a veteran of Testament and White Zombie). The CD documents a concert performed to a sold out crowd in London from early in 2005. Believe me this CD kicks some serious ass and offers no lag time or hesitation as the band belts out hit after hit. I was only a fan of the first three records and can attest that all of my favorites are included here to enjoy. The sound is clear and works well with the levels of the audience whose cheering is mixed in well. I enjoyed hearing Alex Skolnick play this kind of stuff on guitar again, as he was always one of the best the business had. Chuck Billy sounds great and his growls have not suffered over time. Louie Clemente's drumming is solid and he comes in for the last 6 songs of the CD. All of the other songs are played by John Tempesta to a vote of approval. As you listen you can find that the band does not miss a trick and sound like they had not moved apart but instead remained together. This is especially apparent in the twin guitar work of Peterson and Skolnick.
If you are a Testament fan or at least are one who recognizes their contributions to Metal you need to own this CD. Die-hard or not you have to agree that Testament had some great material in their back catalog. Songs like "Electric Crown", and "Practice What You Preach" sound as fresh as they did when they were first released. A companion DVD film of this concert was also released and in this I come with the following criticism. Given the whole CD is 14 tracks and nothing was cut on the DVD to be on the CD; this should have been released as a package. Spitfire Records and Sanctuary have done this in the past and I think this would have been one of those times where this was a smart move. The CD booklet has a lot of great pictures but I felt it could have used some liner notes about the tour and more perspective on it from the band. Overall the sound is great and in the end that is what counts. Look into this one, and grab the DVD as well.
Track Listing
1. The Preacher
2. The New Order
3. The Haunting
4. Electric Crown
5. Sins Of Omission
6. Souls Of Black
7. Into The Pit
8. Trial By Fire
9. Practice What You Preach
10. Let Go Of My World
11. The Legacy
12. Over The Wall
13. Raging Waters
14. Disciples Of The Watch
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