Eric Peterson of Testament

Testament was one of the first thrash metal bands to emerge from the San Francisco Bay Area in the 1980's. Originally formed as 'Legacy' in 1983 by founding members Eric Peterson (rhythm guitar), Derrick Ramirez (guitar) and Louie Clemente (drums), the line-up included vocalist Steve Souza and Greg Christian (bass). Ramirez was later replaced by wunderkind Alex Skolnick (lead guitar). Souza soon departed to join Exodus and suggested that the towering Chuck Billy take over as frontman. The band became known as 'Testament' 3 years later, while recording their debut album in Ithaca, New York.

"The Legacy" was a brutal intro in 1987, putting Testament at the forefront of the flourishing thrash metal scene. Following "Live At Eindhoven", an EP recorded at Holland's Dynamo Festival, "The New Order" in 1988 was well received producing one of the band's most memorable classics "Disciples Of The Watch". Next came the highly successful "Practice What You Preach" in 1989, then the release of "Souls Of Black" in 1990, coinciding with the European 'Clash Of The Titans' tour with Slayer, Megadeth and Suicidal Tendencies.

After "The Ritual" in 1992, Skolnick, who was losing interest in pure metal, decided to pursue his interest in jazz and left the band. Clemente also departed. "Return To Apocalyptic City" in 1993 brought Glen Alvelais (guitar, ex- Forbidden) into the fold, and filling in temporarily for Clemente, Paul Bostaph (ex- Forbidden, Slayer). James Murphy (ex- Death, Obituary, Disincarnate, Cancer) soon stepped in for Alvelais on lead duties for "Low" in 1994, [ more ]

TESTAMENT NOMINATED FOR METAL HAMMER GOLDEN GODS AWARDS 2008...UK FANS CAN WIN TICKETS TO SEE TESTAMENT LIVE!!!

The Formation of Damnation, the crushing new release from thrash metal heroes Testament, has been nominated for Best Album at this year’s Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards. The awards ceremony will take place at the O2 Arena in London on Monday, June 16, where Testament will be performing LIVE, along with Disturbed, In Flames, and Children Of Bodom.
 
Metal Maniacs calls the album, “Freshly brutal and heroically nostalgic…The culmination of a decade of dedication and perseverance for the Bay Area Kings; the entire band sounds brilliant.” Revolver Magazine says, “Don't call it a comeback. Just call it AWESOME.”
 
Die-hard fans from the UK will have the opportunity to win tickets to see the band perform LIVE at Golden Gods 2008. The contest is available to UK residents only. Entrants must send their e-mail address, full name, date of birth, address, post code, and contact number to testament-goldengods@nuclearblast.de. Entrants must be 16+ (with ID) and able to arrange travel to the gig. Doors open at 7pm and close at 11pm. All entries must be received by May 21, 2008.
 
The Formation of Damnation streets in the US on April 29!!

Rhap Session: Testament

by Jen Guyre

For thrash legends Testament, MTV's artist of the week for May 19 - May 26, a lot has come full circle. Born of the groundbreaking Bay Area scene in the early '80s, they have undergone various lineup changes over the years, and even in the face of vocalist Chuck Billy's bout with cancer, they've persevered. They've consistently put out records since ’87 and never strayed from their signature sound, and after having stood the test of time, these O.G. thrashers find that their time is still now. With a thrash resurgence upon the metal world, and the original lineup again in tact, Billy, guitarists Eric Peterson and Alex Skolnick, bassist Greg Christian and drummer Paul Bostaph agree that “music is all about timing.” Explains Billy, “We stayed true to what we started at the beginning, we never got off path. It’s cool [thrash] is growing again … all these [new] bands inspire me.” In an interview originally printed in The Aquarian, we learn where Chuck Billy & Testament come from, what they’ve been through, and what their tenth full length - and first with the original lineup in over 15 years - The Formation of Damnation is all about.

On the birth of thrash
In the early '80s, this type of music was definitely something new and wasn’t normal. It was all about L.A. glam music --  “poser music” -- and in the Bay Area we had Metallica playing thrash music, which to us had attitude and aggression and confidence. We really dug that and were inspired by that. It wasn’t about the image, it was about the power of the music, so I think a lot of us Bay Area bands aspired to be that. We didn’t want to be glam, we wanted to go against the grain, and I think that’s really what kicked off that whole '80s thrash/Bay Area movement. It’s really nice that we were a part of that.

On the original lineup reuniting
When I was sick they put on [a benefit concert called] Thrash of the Titans, and that was actually the first time that all of us were on a stage together at the same time, and that kind of broke the ice. After First Strike Still Deadly, [ed. note: a remastered, re-recorded compilation of seminal Testament hits], I was trying to get on the Dynamo Festival, and the promoter said that he just got the original Anthrax to confirm, and what are the chances of getting the original Testament? And right away I was like, "Wow, that’d be cool," [chuckles] so I called everybody up and within a week’s time, everyone said, "Let’s do it."

We had one show, and then one show turned into five shows that week. We realized we had such a good time performing and the fans were really into it that we ended up taking more shows – it turned into about 20 or 30 shows that year. Then we toured some more the following year, and at that point we kind of just said, "Well, what do you guys think about all of us trying to write a record together?" And they were all into it, so we got home and were working on songs while we were taking breaks between touring, and in September, after all the touring was done, that’s where we really focused on it, and put 100 percent into getting the record done.

On The Formation of Damnation
It’s a statement about where we are politically in the world today with the environment. I wasn’t very fond of President Bush and the war in Iraq. It was upsetting when you’d see these young kids carrying guns and burning flags and basically being raised to hate. It’s strange to see this in our lifetime, and think how it’s gonna be in our children’s lifetime and our grandchildren’s lifetime down the road. I see all these countries building nuclear bombs, and who knows in 10, 20 years from now who’s gonna be in power and possibly use these weapons. Where’s society gonna be? Where’s the planet gonna be? Looking at Nostradamus' predictions, a lot of them came true, and it just seems to be going in that direction where its not gonna be a real friendly world 20 years from now. We’re just lining ourselves up for damnation.

Most of [the songs] have personal messages. “The Afterlife” is a tribute to people who lost their fathers out there; me and Eric lost our fathers in the last four years, and it's saying that we’ll meet again in the after life if there really is an afterlife. There’s a song called “F.E.A.R.” which is "False Evidence Appearing Real," which is a psychology term. “Leave Me Forever” is inspired by friends who have had bad relationships; it’s about letting go and moving on. They’re all personal issues. I think personal messages in lyrics mean more, because they touch people who’ve had experiences like that. After our first record, we kind of stepped away from writing typical heavy metal lyrics about ghosts and goblins and death and blood. We wanted to talk about real things, and real situations that people can relate to.

On how beating cancer changed his life
I’ve been six-years healthy now ... I definitely have a different perspective and outlook. When I was sick, I didn’t think I’d actually be playing music anymore. The person I saw in the mirror with no hair was a different person. I looked at it as I'm done doing music, I'm just gonna get better and spend time with my family and friends, and just kind of focused on that. Once I had my surgery and was clear of cancer, I didn’t listen to any Testament for two years, and one day, I just put a Testament record on and it was brand new to me again. I got excited like, "Wow, man, this is a good song!" And that’s when I called Eric and we took it from there as far as playing goes. As for touring, at that point, I enjoyed performing, but I didn’t want to be gone all the time. I didn’t want to be away from my family and my friends, so when I started touring again, I started taking my family and inviting friends that never had the opportunity to travel around the world. So now it’s actually more enjoyable for me to be on the road. We get up in the morning, travel around town, see the local sights, and then I just so happen to have to perform later that night [chuckles]. When we were younger, we were just touring, partying, sleeping and playing shows. We never got to soak in where we were, and it’s a total different perspective now. I really appreciate the show more.

On the thrash resurgence
I think it’s great. In the early '90s, heavy metal kind of disappeared overnight, and in the early 2000s, it started to rise again with bands playing heavy metal starting to sell records and making a name for themselves. It’s cool it’s growing again; there’s newer bands like The Haunted, Trivium, Shadows Fall, Lamb of God. All these bands inspire me for what I'm doing today, because they’re making names playing the music I enjoy. They inspire me.  It’s like a full circle. It’s really cool because heavy metal fans are the most loyal fans in music. We travel around and see people bringing their 16 year old kids to shows to introduce them to Testament. It’s nice to see that they appreciate that we’re still playing music they enjoy listening to and are trying to inspire a younger generation.

[ read the Full Article here ]

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