Testament-The Gathering

Prosthetic
1999/2007 re-issue

Two years after "Demonic" Testament had to again make some sweeping line-up changes before recording their next effort. They brought in legend Dave Lombardo (Slayer), Steve DiGiorgio (Death) and brought back James Murphy (Death, Obituary) to complete the line-up. I think the death metal elements are a little less here and it leans far more towards the thrash of Testament's work between 1987 and 1990. Yet "The Gathering" is likely heavier in a way that they only touched on in their early albums. There are some definite thrash parts busting loose here and there, but it's the bone-crunching, raw heaviness of this album that got me. This release is probably more straight forward than "Low" or "Demonic", but they plunge forward and just plow into the tracks. Testament never really become more or less involved through their long career, but instead they seem to center more on the level on intensity that they bring. The production is a big help as the sound here comes across as being massive in nature. There is not a lot of build-up to most of the tracks here as they just kind of launch into them, but they don't need build-up. It will only take seconds for the songs to smack your senses and make you realize just how cutting this band can be no matter who is in the band. Fans of Testament's earlier works might be more into this one than they would the two previous albums.