My girlfriend Marisa and old bud Joe Stanky had never witnessed the boys of Testament live, so I waxed poetic about Alex and Eric’s dual guitars and even more about Chuck Billy’s massive stage presence. I figured that there wouldn’t be much of a turn out. I underestimated The Legacy of Testament, however. If you know The Chance Theater, then you’re aware that there are two floors, and only when a bigger band comes around do they open the second floor. To my surprise, the top came open as hordes of old and new schoolers filled the hall.

Now I’ve never been the type of guy to watch a show and say “Alex Skolnick’s playing was superb, though he missed this note in the solo to 'Over the Wall,'” or “Paul Bostaph seemed to miss a few beats at the end of 'True Believer.'” I’m rarely the uptight Metalhead in the back, arms folded, analyzing the musicianship of whoever’s sweating blood on the stage. It’s not about that for me. The band either sucks or it doesn’t. They either transport you to that ‘Metal dimension,’ making you forget you have to wake up for work the next day, or they don’t do a thing to make you forget your nuts are itchy. I saw Stephen Pearcy a year back, and I scratched my sack the whole gig. I saw Testament last night and they rocked my fucking balls off.

Yes, Chuck filled the stage with his body, ran it like a race car, and belted out a litany of Testament tunes spanning twenty years. What I love about this guy is that he sings each song the same way he did when they recorded it. So you get the barking of the new stuff, the growling of the Low-era, high pitched early stuff, and the clean vocals, and it comes off without a hitch. The guy remains a master of his craft, pumping up the crowd, ruling the mic, and singing like he’s meant to be there. Marisa and Joe were more impressed than I was, I suppose, since I’m the spoiled guy who’s witnessed Testament few times before.

Paul Bostaph replaced Nick barker on drums since Nick couldn’t get into the country. He pounded through the set with ease. Standouts and crowd pleasers included "Disciples of the Watch," "Over the Wall," "Into the Pit," "Practice What You Preach," and "The Ballad." I especially got a kick out of Eric Peterson and Alex Skolnick playing together again. It just seemed like they were having fun. Skolnick smiled the whole gig, at times talked to the crowd, and jammed like a motherfucker.

What a show! Worth all of my twenty bucks and it’s got my buddy Joe all psyched for some more old school Thrash shows. As I type he keeps calling as we book a flight to Ft. Lauderdale on Oct. 3 for a Megadeth gig. Joe may not recall, as I do, that Mr. Mustaine dissed the Testament fellas a few years back as he included himself among Slayer, Anthrax, and Metallica as ‘The Big Four.’ They all may have been bigger… but bigger doesn’t necessarily mean better. And that show I witnessed last night was one of the better shows I’ve been to in quite some time, including Dave’s visit to The Chance about six years back.

As Testament left the stage after the final tune, Chuck Billy stopped to speak. Looking up at the faces cheering for more, he yelled with a fist "Heavy Metal Forever!" It was Just the right amount of cheese and crackers to make me smile, feeling like I was part of a really sweet moment. Heavy Metal forever Chuck! Rock on Brother! Great fucking show.

written by Alan Gilkeson

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