Gig Review: Testament @ Koko, London 8 May 2005

In my view one of the best bands to come out of the 80's bay area thrash scene, and one of the most underrated is the mighty Testament. While the Metallica's of the world sold their way onto the charts and worldwide domination, Testament always just kept plugging away at what they do best (and far better than Metallica have done for years). Tonight was extra special because it featured the band's original lineup, reunited specially for this European tour, a chance to see what many had never seen, and what we may never see again.

Main support came in the form of Susperia, who played a heartened set which was hampered by average sound production from the mixing desk. The crowd however, were waiting for the main event tonight, and I felt for the band, who tried hard but were simply there on a night when things weren't meant to work for them.

And so to the aforementioned main event. When Testament hit the stage with "The Preacher", the floor of the venue was instantly transformed into a heaving pit. Bodies flew about as the near-classic lineup featuring Chuck Billy, Eric Peterson, Alex Skolnick, Greg Christian and John Tempesta ripped through Testament's back catalogue with venom, energy and aggression. Songs aired included "The New Order", "The Haunting", "Electric Crown" and "Sins of Omission". Alex Skolnick in particular must have spent his time away from the band practising all day, because if you thought he was good before, this evening he was playing riffs and solos humans simply shouldn't be able to! The band continued through "Souls of Black", "Into the Pit" and "Trial by Fire" before John Tempesta took a bow and left the stage to be relieved by none other than Louie Clemente.

The second half of the set featured yet more classics, Skolnick ripping his way through "Practice What You Preach" to much appreciation from the crowd before the band proceeded to play "Let Go Of My World". A more mellow moment was provided by "The Legacy", short lived once the band tore into "Over The Wall" and my personal favourite "Raging Waters". The show closer tonight was "Disciples of the Watch", after which the band left the stage without returning for an encore, a shame really considering how many more fantastic songs they have in their arsenal. Nonetheless, not a single person in the room was disappointed with Testament's performance tonight, and yet again, as I have witnessed so often in the last year, the older band showed all the young upstarts how it's done. Mind Blowing.

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