Low (Testament album)
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| Testament studio album | ||||
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Publication |
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| Label (s) | Atlantic Records | |||
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Title (number) |
12 |
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running time |
47:08 |
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Studio (s) |
A&M Studios, Hollywood , Studio D, Sausalito , California |
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Low is the sixth studio album by the American thrash metal band Testament . It was released on Atlantic Records in October 1994 . It was the first full album after guitarist Alex Skolnick and drummer Louie Clemente left. James Murphy joined the band for Skolnick, John Tempesta can be heard on drums, but he is not named as an official band member. Low was the last album with Greg Christian on bass until his return in 2008. After the somewhat rockier album The Ritual , the band took a much tougher course. So tends Chuck Billy's singing in parts to a death metal -like growling .
History and content
After Alex Skolnick left the band at the end of 1992, drummer Louie Clemente left the band for a short time. Chuck Billy said in an interview that Clemente just didn't get in touch after his wedding. For Skolnick Glen Alvelais , previously with Forbidden , was hired, who can also be heard on the EP Return to the Apocalyptic City from 1993. There were differences of opinion with him during the pre-production of Low , so the band signed James Murphy (ex- Obituary / Death / Cancer ) shortly before the studio appointment . Paul Bostaph , also from Forbidden, helped out on drums for the tour activities . He signed on to Slayer shortly afterwards , and John Tempesta (formerly Exodus ) was brought in to replace him , who played Low , but switched to White Zombie while mixing . Jon Dette (previously Evil Dead ) stepped in as drummer for him, who stayed in the band for the following tours until the beginning of 1996 and then also switched to Slayer as the successor to Bostaph. Despite some good reviews, Low did not sell well enough, so Atlantic Records terminated the record deal with Testament after this album.
At the time Low was created , the Bay Area Thrash was already fighting “for survival” in the face of alternative rock and grunge . So the band tried something new with the harder style, as well as with the choice of producer Garth Richardson , who worked for The Melvins and Rage Against the Machine . For the lyrics of Low , Chuck Billy worked with the external songwriter Del James , as on the previous record . The ballad Trail of Tears deals with the subject of the North American Indians from the perspective of Chuck Billy, who is of Indian descent. Urotsukidōji is named after a Japanese manga film and contains, in addition to bass and guitar solo parts, voice samples , including some in German. They were recorded with previous producer Michael Rosen . A music video was shot for the title track Low .
reception
Allmusic's John Franck particularly highlighted the “mighty” guitar riffs on Low . James Murphy is a "solid" replacement for the "guitar wizard" Alex Skolnick. However, the album is not a full return to its old form. The plate was rated four out of five stars. Oliver Recker from the German magazine Metal Hammer certified the band a strong comeback and praised the soulful solos and melodies of Murphy. Recker gave the album six out of seven points.
Track list
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Chart positions Explanation of the data |
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- Low - 3:33 (Music: Peterson. Text: Billy)
- Legions (In Hiding) - 4:17 (Music: Peterson. Text: Billy, James)
- Hail Mary - 3:32 (Music: Peterson, Murphy. Text: Billy, James)
- Trail of Tears - 6:06 (Music: Peterson. Text: Billy)
- Shades of War - 4:44 (Music: Peterson. Text: Billy, James)
- PC - 2:50 (Music: Christian, Peterson. Text: Christian)
- Dog Faced Gods - 4:02 (Music: Peterson. Text: Peterson, Billy, James)
- All I Could Bleed - 3:37 (Music: Peterson. Text: Billy)
- Urotsukidōji - 3:40 (Instrumental, Music: Peterson, Christian)
- Chasing Fear - 4:56 (Music: Peterson, Christian. Text: Billy, James)
- Ride - 3:16 (Music: Peterson. Text: Billy, James)
- Last Call - 2:41 (Instrumental, Music: Peterson, Christian.)
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b www.rockhard.de: Band biography Testament ( page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Frank Trojan: The Zero Hour , in: Rock Hard, No. 73, June 1993, p. 94.
- ↑ www.allmusic.com: Band biography testament of Eduardo Rivadavia
- ↑ a b www.allmusic.com: Low review by James Franck
- ^ Metal Hammer, October 1994, p. 52
- ↑ hitparade.ch: Testament in the Swiss Hit Parade (accessed on March 23, 2009)
- ↑ billboard.com: Chart Listing For The Week Of Oct 29 1994 ( Memento April 15, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) (accessed March 23, 2009)
