TESTAMENT — The Formation Of Damnation (review)

TESTAMENT — The Formation Of Damnation album cover Album · 2008 · Thrash Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
5/5 ·
Kingcrimsonprog
Testament return with a brand new studio album, reuniting 4/5 of the classic line up and bringing with them the incredible Paul Bostaph, one of metal’s most underrated drummers and a true embodiment of thrash itself.

What a strong album The Formation Of Damnation truly is. The album mixes the band’s trademark thrash metal roots with the more contemporary style found on later releases such as ‘The Gathering,’ to create a very heavy, very fast and ultimately a very impressive album.

The blistering ‘More Than Meets the Eye,’ is incredibly fast and catchy, highlighting the bands thrash metal style, which contrasts nicely with the title track; ‘The Formation of Damnation,’ which is a more modern mixture of contemporary metal and death metal. (Especially rewarding considering Chuck Billy’s impressive vocal style)

Elsewhere, the poignant track ‘Afterlife,’ uses a mixture of melody and terrific lyrics to deliver a simple but effective message in a powerful style.

Overall, This is the sort of album that you will still be listening to in twenty years time, it just feels like a classic and sounds like a monster. ‘Brutal,’ is an understatement, but its the closest you’re going to get to a fitting description. The album toes the line between modern and classic in a very successful way, and I strongly recommend you give it a chance. Its as creative as ‘Low,’ and as energetic as ‘The Legacy.’

I can’t recommend this album highly enough.
Share this review

Review Comments

Post a public comment below | Send private message to the reviewer
Please login to post a shout
No shouts posted yet. Be the first member to do so above!

MMA TOP 5 Metal ALBUMS

Rating by members, ranked by custom algorithm
Albums with 30 ratings and more
Master of Puppets Thrash Metal
METALLICA
Buy this album from our partners
Paranoid Heavy Metal
BLACK SABBATH
Buy this album from our partners
Moving Pictures Hard Rock
RUSH
Buy this album from our partners
Powerslave NWoBHM
IRON MAIDEN
Buy this album from our partners
Rising Heavy Metal
RAINBOW
Buy this album from our partners

New Metal Artists

New Metal Releases

Hin helga kvöl Atmospheric Sludge Metal
SÓLSTAFIR
Buy this album from MMA partners
The Cycles of Suffering Black Metal
BURIAL OATH
Buy this album from MMA partners
Facilis Descensus Averno Death Metal
SAEVUS FINIS
Buy this album from MMA partners
Merciless Crossover Thrash
BODY COUNT
Buy this album from MMA partners
More new releases

New Metal Online Videos

More videos

New MMA Metal Forum Topics

More in the forums

New Site interactions

More...

Latest Metal News

members-submitted

More in the forums

Social Media

Follow us