Artist: Testament
Title: Live In London
Label: Spitfire Records
Release Date: 11/1/2005
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating: 8/10
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.
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Artist: Testament
Title: “Live In London”
Label: Eagle Vision
Release Date: 11/1/2005
Genre: Heavy Metal
Rating: 8/10
This DVD was released on the same day as the CD and both of them feature the performance of the reunited Testament “classic” lineup. Once again you can see Chuck Billy, Alex Skolnick, Eric Peterson, Greg Christian and Louie Clemente on one stage. You don’t have to be a Testament fan to enjoy the video but of course it certainly helps you get a lot more out of it. Filmed in London as the title denotes the video captures the guys smashing through a selection of their greatest songs for a Metal hungry audience. While it is strictly a live performance shoot of the band you can actually sense the excitement as it all goes down. Lead singer Chuck Billy seems in top-notch form after dealing with cancer and his voice comes through if anything a little rougher than the old days. That’s good for Testament material to be most certain. I enjoyed being able to see this DVD as I missed the performances when they did them in the area as the shows were few and far between. I have always been a fan of the playing of Alex Skolnick and while I enjoy his jazz adventures of late and his work with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, it was fantastic to see him doing these classic numbers. Everyone in the band performs admirably and I even referenced in the CD review that you would not think they had been on different avenues for so long. It sounds on point on the CD and when you watch it on the DVD the band shows you that they are true to the music and capable of still delivering it with the intensity that it merited. Veteran drummer John Tempesta handles the beginning half of the DVD and then Louie comes out to give the crowd the rest of the set. Everyone in the audience is going berserk and rightly so. These Bay-Area Thrashers gave some anthems back in the day and you can see the audience eager to receive more and more.
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