Band:	Testament
Album:	The Formation Of Damnation
Style:	Bay Area thrash metal
Release date:	April 25, 2008
A review by:	Baz Anderson

Disc I
01. For The Glory Of...
02. More Than Meets The Eye
03. The Evil Has Landed
04. Formation Of Damnation
05. Dangers Of The Faithless
06. The Persecuted Won't Forget
07. Henchmen Ride
08. Killing Season
09. Afterlife
10. F.E.A.R.
11. Leave Me Forever

Disc II [Special Edition DVD]
+ The Making of "The Formation Of Damnation"
+ Photo Gallery

Nine years has passed since these legends of thrash metal last released a studio album, and so after an undeniably long wait Testament return in glorious form with "The Formation Of Damnation", picking up where "The Gathering" left off almost a century ago. The album has the Testament stamp all over it, this is thrash metal like Testament always deliver with both more melodic and modern elements as well as a slight peek back to how things were done in the late-eighties.

The theme of "The Formation Of Damnation" is solidarity and a very firm base, everything is very controlled at a steady pace and this theme can be traced through the duration of the entire album whether it be the steady opening galloper of "More Than Meets The Eye" or up-tempo tracks such as phenomenal "The Persecuted Won't Forget" or "F.E.A.R.". Testament explore the fruits of both new and old sounds and weave these into the sound the band achieved on "The Gathering" album to create the sound of "The Formation Of Damnation". Fruits of the new include an overall more full and melodic sound to the guitar riffs showing a slight tinge of the sound modern thrash bands crop up with these days, but also songs such as the previously mentioned "The Persecuted Won't Forget" go all-out with the double bass drums as fast as Testament has ever been before and frantic guitaring to keep up with the times.

The fruits of the old may be a little more prominent in this album as we have almost sing-along, stomp-along song "Dangers Of The Faithless" packed full of tune but also makes you want to bang your head or tap your foot at the same time, and also the immense title track of the album "The Formation Of Damnation" is just a slab of solid gold taken from the Testament of the old-school, with its stabbing guitar riff and solid, nicely paced snare bringing the thrash along to the party.

After nine years it would be somewhat of an anticlimax if "The Formation Of Damnation" did not deliver the goods, but not only does the album deliver the goods but it does it in such professional and elegant style showing every band Testament influenced just how to do it properly one more time. Aside from only one or two songs that never really get going, the album feels like a classic after the first fifteen minutes with each song contributing a part to the whole mix. "The Formation Of Damnation" is going to bring Testament back up to heights they once had and place them right at the top of the top of the thrash metal food chain once again. This is a more than successful return of old-school thrash metal with a modern spin, and it does exactly what it says on the tin; makes you want to thrash!