Testament (band)

Testament is an American thrash metal band from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1983 under the name Legacy, the band's current lineup includes rhythm guitarist Eric Peterson, lead vocalist Chuck Billy, lead guitarist Alex Skolnick, bassist Steve Di Giorgio and drummer Chris Dovas. Testament has experienced many lineup changes over the years, with Peterson being the only remaining original member (though both he and Billy, who replaced original frontman Steve "Zetro" Souza in 1986, appear on every studio album). The band has released fourteen studio albums (one of which is a collection of re-recorded songs), four live albums, five compilation albums, thirteen singles and three DVDs. They are estimated to have sold over 1.4 million albums in the United States since the beginning of the SoundScan era, and over 14 million copies worldwide as of 2016.

Testament is often credited as one of the most popular and influential bands of the thrash metal scene, as well as one of the leaders of the second wave of the genre of the late 1980s, and they are considered a significant member of the so-called "Big Six of Bay Area thrash metal", along with Exodus, Death Angel, Lȧȧz Rockit, Forbidden and Vio-lence. By the time they changed their name from Legacy to Testament in 1986, the band had assumed a stable lineup that included Billy, Peterson, Skolnick, and two other founding members, bassist Greg Christian and drummer Louie Clemente; it is often referred to as the "classic lineup" of Testament. While the band was initially signed to Megaforce, they were one of the early thrash metal bands to sign to a major label, Atlantic Records, through which the band's first six studio albums were released. Their first three studio albums, The Legacy (1987), The New Order (1988), and Practice What You Preach (1989), cemented Testament's reputation as one of the most successful thrash metal bands, with the latter becoming their first to enter the Top 100 on the Billboard 200 chart.

The band's next three albums – Souls of Black (1990), The Ritual (1992), and Low (1994) – saw similar success, with the first two charting highly on the Billboard 200 chart, while The Ritual was supported by Testament's only charting US single "Return to Serenity". Clemente and Skolnick had both left Testament by the end of 1992, and within the next decade, the band had endured many personnel changes that included guitarists Glen Alvelais, James Murphy, Steve Smyth and "Metal" Mike Chlasciak, bassists Derrick Ramirez (who was originally in Legacy as a guitarist) and Di Giorgio, and drummers Paul Bostaph, John Tempesta, Jon Dette, Chris Kontos, Gene Hoglan, Dave Lombardo, Steve Jacobs and Jon Allen. In 2001, at around the same time Billy was diagnosed with germ cell seminoma, Testament reunited with Souza, Skolnick and Tempesta for the album of re-recorded material First Strike Still Deadly. Following Billy's recovery from cancer in 2002, Testament resumed activity, and their "classic lineup" briefly reunited in 2005, resulting in the live album Live in London; however, Skolnick and Christian would rejoin the band permanently, the latter remaining until 2014. Testament's popularity was revived with the albums The Formation of Damnation (2008), Dark Roots of Earth (2012), Brotherhood of the Snake (2016), and Titans of Creation (2020), all entering the Top 100 on the Billboard 200, and they have continued to tour consistently. The band's latest studio album, Para Bellum, was released on October 10, 2025.

The band was formed in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1983 under the name Legacy by guitarist Eric Peterson and his cousin, guitarist Derrick Ramirez. They eventually hired drummer Louie Clemente, vocalist Steve "Zetro" Souza and bassist Greg Christian, and began playing shows with bands like Exodus, Slayer, Anthrax, Lȧȧz Rockit, and Death Angel, among others.^{[citation needed]} Clemente left the band in 1985 and was replaced by drummer Mike Ronchette. Ramirez departed soon after and then-teenage guitarist Alex Skolnick, who had studied under Bay Area guitarist Joe Satriani, was brought into the band. Legacy had been writing original material since its formation and released a self-titled, four-song demo in 1985. Souza left the band in the following year to replace Paul Baloff in Exodus and was replaced by Chuck Billy at Souza's suggestion. Ronchette had also left the band, and Clemente rejoined.^{[citation needed]}

Legacy was signed to Megaforce Records in 1986 on the strength of their demo tape. While recording their first album, the band was forced to change their name to Testament (which, according to Maria Ferrero in the May 2007 issue of Revolver, was suggested by Billy Milano of S.O.D. and M.O.D.), as there were already multiple other bands with the name Legacy. Legacy played their last show prior to the name change at the Stone in San Francisco on March 4, 1987.

Testament's debut album, The Legacy, was released in April 1987 on Megaforce Records, and also distributed by Atlantic. They received instant fame within thrash circles and were often compared^{[by whom?]} with fellow Bay Area thrash metal pioneers Metallica. Thanks to this, and the regular rotation of their first-ever music video "Over the Wall" on MTV's Headbangers Ball, the band quickly managed to increase their exposure by heading out on successful North American and European tours with Anthrax, who were supporting their Among the Living album. On this tour, the Live at Eindhoven EP was recorded. Testament also opened for Megadeth and Slayer, as well as their then-labelmates Overkill.

Testament's second album, The New Order, was released in May 1988, and it found the band continuing in a similar vein. The album was a minor success, peaking at number 136 on the Billboard 200, but managed to sell over 250,000 copies on the strength of the airplay of "Trial by Fire" and the cover version of Aerosmith's "Nobody's Fault" (through radio and television), as well as relentless tour schedules. In promotion of The New Order, Testament supported Megadeth on their So Far, So Good... So What! tour in Europe, and toured North America with the likes of Overkill, Voivod, Death Angel, Vio-lence, Nuclear Assault, Sanctuary, Raven, Forbidden, and Heathen. They also made a number of festival appearances during the summer of 1988, such as Metalfest in Milwaukee, Aardschokdag in The Netherlands, and replaced Megadeth on some dates of the European Monsters of Rock tour, also featuring Iron Maiden, Kiss, David Lee Roth, Great White and Anthrax. By the time The New Order tour concluded in early 1989, Testament had not only cemented their reputation as one of the most-acclaimed thrash metal bands, but had also begun to headline their own tours.

Testament released their third studio album, Practice What You Preach, in August 1989. The album minimized the occult and gothic themes found in the lyrical content of their first two albums, instead focusing on social issues such as politics and corruption. While staying true to its thrash metal roots, the album also saw the band draw influences from a variety of musical genres, such as traditional heavy metal, jazz fusion and progressive metal. Practice What You Preach was a commercial breakthrough for Testament, reaching at number 77 on the Billboard 200, and it was accompanied by three singles – the title track, "The Ballad" and "Greenhouse Effect" – that received significant airplay from AOR radio stations and MTV's Headbangers Ball, further helping raise the band's profile. Testament toured for nearly a year behind Practice What You Preach, performing with numerous bands such as Overkill, Annihilator, Wrathchild America, Mortal Sin, Xentrix, Nuclear Assault, Savatage, Flotsam and Jetsam, Mordred, Dark Angel, and a then-lesser known Primus. Despite selling more than 450,000 copies, the album has never been certified gold by the RIAA.