The ‘ ’ of thrash metal – , , Anthrax and Megadeth – all date back to 1981 save for the ’Deth, who came to be following guitarist Dave Mustaine’s expulsion from Metallica two years later. Down the years, this sacking and Mustaine’s vow to wreak “revenge” for the wrongdoing of his former bandmates became an apocryphal tale, as the legend of the genre’s top dogs grew, grew and grew some more. This furore reached frenzy point in 2010 when all four bands shared stages in America and Europe for the very first time.
The Big Four was a term coined back in the late 80s. Two decades later, maybe, just maybe, it’s time for some revisionism? , the Bay Area bangers from whom Metallica poached guitarist Kirk Hammett, had sprung to life before any of the Big Four. And although, like Megadeth, Testament are often considered gatecrashers (they formed as Legacy in 1983, releasing an all-time classic debut, , three years later), the San Franciscans have inescapably created some of the very finest and most original music that thrash-metal has to offer.
Fans of Testament won’t need reminding that , featuring a reunion of four-fifths of their classic lineup, was hailed as Album Of The Year at ’s own Golden Gods ceremony in 2008. Yes, the moment in time Metallica sent us . Testament’s founding member, guitarist Eric Peterson, is here in London to discuss , a follow-up to that in terms of quality matches almost anything released so far during the group’s almost three-d.
