Two years after the release of their death metal album, Demonic, in 1997 Testament returned with a new line-up and their last album of original material prior to the announcement of The Formation of Damnation (slated for release in April 2008). The album, called The Gathering, tones down the overt death style of Demonic and returns to a more thrash oriented sound, although there are still traces of the death style. In short, it continued the evolution of a band that has been one of the most consistent thrash acts since their arrival on the scene in 1987.

The album went largely ignored upon its release through Spitfire Records. I have to admit that I was among those who ignored it. Granted, I was, at the time, less than thrilled with Demonic. Combine that with the fact that there was little promotion of its release, it may not be that it was ignored but rather that no one knew about it. Anyway, Prosthetic Records is re-releasing the album so we may have a second chance to discover what a chosen few have known for nearly a decade.

The 1990's were a decade of change for the long time thrash band. The Gathering was the fifth release and the fifth line-up of the decade. At the core of the band were vocalist Chuck Billy and guitarist Eric Peterson. They alone had weathered the storm since their 1987 debut, The Legacy. The result was a series of albums that were all decidedly Testament, but distinctly different in execution.

The decade began with the release of Souls of Black, the well-received follow-up to their breakthrough Practice What You Preach. The next full-length was Low, which saw the band moving in a decidedly heavier direction that culminated in 1997's Demonic. The Gathering saw a new line-up bring more thrash back into their recently perfected death metal side. The result is possibly the finest realization of what it means to be Testament.

I doubt that The Gathering will ever be considered in the same breath as Practice or Low, but there is absolutely no denying the excellence put forth. The problem was most likely timing. 1999 saw the monster emergences of nu-metal acts such as Slipknot, Static-X, and Limp Bizkit getting the lions share of attention while bands such as Testament and Overkill were overlooked, despite strong releases. It was a changing of the guard, in a manner of speaking. Although, not it seems that the thrash bands of old will have the last laugh as the nu-metal fad is dying down and fans are looking more for real metal.

The new line-up featured the return of guitarist James Murphy, who had appeared on Low in 1994, joining Eric Peterson to bring back the two guitar attack that was absent from Demonic. Joining on bass is Steve DiGiorgio (Sadus), bringing a distinctly different approach than his predecessor, Derek Ramirez. Finally you have a legendary drummer replacing a legendary drummer. Gene Hoglan left after one album to work with Strapping Young Lad, but stepping up to take over the drum duties was Dave Lombardo, who attained his legendary status while with Slayer. He brings his incredible talent to bear on The Gathering, ably filling the large shoes that were left behind.