Check out Testament and Kreator at the Wellmont Theater on Thursday, October 10th!
Formed in Berkeley, California in 1983 as Legacy, Testament is often regarded as one of the biggest and most influential thrash metal bands outside of the “Big 4”. Currently, the band consists of guitarists Eric Peterson and Alex Skolnick, drummer Chris Dovas, bassist Steve Di Giorgio, and vocalist Chuck Billy.
As Legacy, the group got its start playing alongside then-new bands like Exodus, Slayer, and Anthrax in smaller clubs. In 1986, the band signed with Megaforce Records and changed their name early the following year to Testament.
Testament’s debut, 1987’s The Legacy was an instant hit amongst thrash fans, garnering comparisons to the thrash titans Metallica. Between this, their music video for “Over the Wall” regularly playing on MTV’s Headbangers Ball, and going out on North American and European tours with the likes of Anthrax, Slayer, Overkill, and Testament, the band managed to make a great name for itself right out of the gate.
Their follow-up, 1988’s The New Order, continued Testament’s rise to legendary status. The album peaked at number 136 on the Billboard 200 chart and spawned three of the band’s most-played tracks in “Into the Pit”, “The New Order”, and “Disciples of the Watch”. The band continued to tour relentlessly, allowing them to headline their own tours by 1989.
Testament continued their string of successful releases with Practice What You Preach (1989), Souls of Black (1990), and The Ritual (1992), which each performing better commercially than the last, with The Ritual hitting number 55 on the Billboard 200 chart. Each of the three albums progressed the band’s sound further from the straightforward thrash of their 1987 debut.
Then, in 1994, Testament released Low, which was one of their most diverse albums as it was influenced by genres such as alternative, death metal, and progressive rock. While the album didn’t chart as well, many fans appreciated the band’s change, feeling that it showed they were doing it for the music not for the mainstream success.
Their next two albums, 1997’s Demonic and 1999’s The Gathering saw the band stepping further and further into the realm of death metal, with The Gathering even having a small black metal influence. In 2001, the band released First Strike Still Deadly, a collection of re-recorded songs from their first two albums.
What followed was a brief hiatus, with the band returning in 2005, where they resumed their rigorous touring schedule. In 2008, Testament released their first album of new music in 9 years titled The Formation of Damnation. The album was very well received, charting very well globally and winning the “Best Album” award at the Metal Hammer Golden Gods that year.
While heavily touring as usual, Testament began working on their next album titled Dark Roots of Earth, with writing and recording taking place from 2009 to 2011 and was released in 2012. The album was extremely well received, topping numerous charts in the US and performing just as well globally.
Testament would go on to release album number 12 in 2016 titled Brotherhood of the Snake. The album had similar success on the charts, debuting at number 20 on the Billboard 200 charts. The follow up, 2020’s Titans of Creation, was supposed to be followed by a headlining tour, but was postponed until 2022 due to Covid.
Now, Testament is currently gearing up for their 14th album, with the album entering the mastering phase of production in December of 2023. They are set to tour with Anthrax and Kreator this winter, and Behemoth this summer over in Europe. In between, in true Testament fashion, the touring never stops, as they are hitting the road in the US with Kreator and Possessed this fall.
Formed in 1982, German thrash outfit Kreator has had an impressive 42-year career and shows absolutely no signs of stopping. Currently, the band consists of drummer Jürgen “Ventor” Reil, bassist Frédéric Leclercq, guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and vocalist and guitarist Miland “Mille” Petrozza.
Early in their career, they went under a few different names before settling with Kreator in 1984. The following year, they released their debut album Endless Pain (1985), quickly followed by 1986’s Pleasure to Kill. Pleasure to Kill has since been considered a classic of the thrash genre and a major inspiration of death metal, and brought with it their live set standard “Flag of Hate”.
Kreator released their third album, Terrible Certainty in 1987 and featured one of their hits “Behind the Mirror”. Despite not having the same type of commercial success at this point like other thrash acts, the band was able to headline their own shows and open for other thrash acts such as Megadeth, D.R.I. and Overkill strictly from their popularity in the thrash community.
Extreme Aggression, Kreator’s fourth album was released in 1989 which was met with critical success and became a hit amongst European metal fans. The band would then release Renewal in 1992, followed by Cause for Conflict in 1995, both of which more along the lines of groove and industrial metal, a change from their thrash style due to the genre’s decline in the 90s.
Kreator would continue to experiment with their sound, releasing Outcast (1997) and Endorama (1999), both of which having ambient and gothic influences as well as samples. The experimentation ended in 2001 with the band releasing Violent Revolution, a return to their thrash roots, bringing them back to the success they had in the 80s and beyond.
In 2005, Kreator released Enemy of God which was met with similar success, showing fans that the band was truly back to using the thrash style. Since then, the band has released Phantom Antichrist (2012), Gods of Violence (2017), and Hate Über Alles (2022), all three of which showed that the band finally reached a commercially successful level. All three of these albums charted well globally, topping charts in the US, Germany, and the UK.
Now, Kreator is working on their 16th studio album, with plans to start recording in 2025. In the meantime, the band is continuing to tour, set to tour with Anthrax and Testament in Europe this summer, followed by a co-headlining US tour with Testament, aptly titled the Klash of the Titans tour in the fall.
Tickets on sale at wellmonttheater.com.
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