News |

Guitar World Column |

Interviews |

Pictures |

Album Reviews |

Gig Reviews |

Release Dates |

History |

Articles |

Setlists |

Upcoming |

Contact

Track Listing: The Preacher Alone In The Dark Burnt Offerings A Dirge Eerie Inhabitants The New Order Low Urotsukidoji Into The Pit Souls Of Black Practice What You Preach Apocalyptic City Hail Mary Dog Faced Gods Return To Serenity The Legacy Trail Of Tears

After many years out of print, fans can relive Testament's "Live At The Fillmore", a live recording of the performance they put on at the famed hometown venue back in 1995 during the "Low" touring cycle. The unique aspect of this show was that along with the usual suspects Chuck Billy, Eric Peterson and Greg Christian, the band consisted of James Murphy on guitar and John Dette on drums, amidst a period where the band was going through constant shifts in line-ups and changes in labels. Yet amazingly in this show, they managed to deliver the essence of what Testament is known for, as is evident from this live album.

The final mix on the 17 tracks that make up this album is excellent, and listeners shouldn't be able to find any reasons to complain in that regard. It's important to capture the crowd's participation in live albums, and they've certainly done that here as you can feel the energy among the packed Fillmore crowd in between songs, making this sound like a truly special evening for everyone involved. In terms of the set list, as someone who didn't get a chance to see them any time before 2008, it is very interesting for me to note how their song selection has changed over the years. There are certain tunes that have stood the test of time and still feature in the set as staples, songs like "Alone In The Dark", "Into The Pit", "Souls Of Black" and "Practice What You Preach". While there are others like "Hail Mary", "Trail Of Tears" and "Urotsukidoji" which featured only during the Low album touring cycle and rarely saw the light of day in subsequent tours. Other than these, because of the fact that only six full-length albums to pick from, there are certain other rarities and deep cuts that would make you feel part of a memorable show.

The ordering of the selected tunes is excellent and the whole recording has a very cohesive flow to it from song to song. As for the band's performance, they sound in absolutely top form, led by the beastly Chuck Billy on vocals and some amazing bass licks by Greg Christian, specially on Urotsukidoji and obviously Souls Of Black.

In conclusion, "Live At The Fillmore" perfectly captures a special show recorded during an interesting time in the band's history, and all Testament fans should pick up a copy. Whether you were at that very show and want to relive it for your own nostalgia, or a new fan trying to find out what a Testament show used to be like in those days, you'll find this release to your liking. Long live Testament. \m/