Reply #119: From the metal genre'

[kwolf68]

Testament. They came in the 2nd wave of hardcore speed metal and what made the '2nd wave' so important was the virtuosity of the musicians. Testament had masterful musicians and probably some of the most thoughtful, brilliant guitar solos I've ever heard. The basic structuring of the songs wasn't as complex as say Metallica's Master of Puppets or ...And Justice or some of Megadeth's work (Rust in Peace, Peace Sells), but Testament should have had their place in that they were very competitive to both Metallica and Megadeth and had the chops to boot. And unlike some of the other bands of that era (Exodus, Destruction, Kreator) who I thought blazed a ring of fire up your ass, Testament was more commerical because they had a dude who could actually sing and not growl, puke, or scream (although I like screaming). Testament could pull off breakneck fast thrash bashers with ease yet turn around and do moody slow heavy songs, instrumentals, and even ballads...for my money, the ballads "Return To Serenity", "the Ballad", and "The Legacy" easily destroy what most rockers would call ballads. The music is exceptionally well crafted by some outstandings players with a sound that just didn't get there I guess.