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9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another great Testament disc, January 2, 2006
Testament may not have invented thrash metal, but they are still a very underrated band. The musicians in Testament are equally as talented as anybody in thrash's Big Four bands (Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax), and they are more hook oriented than many speed metal bands. Lead guitarist Alex Skolnick's solos are a lot more technical than Slayer's, and are usually every bit as breathtaking as Metallica's. The guitar shredding on Testament's third studio album, "Practice What You Preach" (which was released in 1989), is, of course, no exception. Even when the rest of the band (especially the drummer) sounds somewhat generic, Skolnick soars on every track with fiery, blowtorch riffs and wonderful solos. "Time Is Coming" and the title track are both catchy numbers with chugging riffs, thumping drums, and vocals which almost echo James Hatfield (plus "Practice What You Preach" has a shout a long of "preach!" in the chorus.) These songs are also both capped off by a lengthy, wailing guitar solo. Likewise, "Perilous Nation" features up and down, classical-sounding guitar work, "Envy Life" has an ascending solo, and "Sins of Omission" is highlighted by another superb, very complex solo which has several different parts to it. Other standout tracks include "The Ballad" and the instrumental (albeit brief) album closer, "Confusion Fusion." The former track, "The Ballad," kind of sounds like Metallica's 1986 single, "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)," because it begins as a power ballad with acoustic plunking, but it gradually builds and gains momentum. Over the years, this album has taken a slight dip in sound quality, but it has aged better than some of the music from the Eighties. Testament may not be as iconic as some thrash bands, but albums like "Practice What You Preach" prove that they definitely should be. This is another great, must-own album from one of thrash's most important, most underrated, and finest bands.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ten tracks of thrashy goodness!, June 1, 2002
Right from the outset of the title track, "Practice What You Preach" is some roaringly infectious old school thrash. With lots of ripping riffs, Chuck Billy's unmistakable howl, and just enough use of melody to please the ear, this is doubtless one of the underappreciated gems of the thrash era. With the exception of the aptly titled "The Ballad," the album never deviates from its formula of energetic, fist-pumping metal, with some top notch musicianship to boot; you especially have to love Alex Skolnick's blazing solos. I'm not going to bother citing specific songs, as they're all excellent and I don't care for song-by-song reviews anyway. In conclusion, BUY BUY BUY!
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Testament-a band that is always evolving;, August 29, 2004
One might start by saying that a lot of the material on this album is a departure from their two earlier albums. The biggest departure is the lyrics. For most reviews I don't even mention the lyrics because most bands don't know what they're talking about (or it sounds forced). But on this album, the lyrics deal less with the occult and "gothic" type themes to deal with worldy issue like rainforest destruction, the U.N., pathological liars...
The opener starts out with usual speed of a rock song. No speed antics yet...and there won't be any speedy songs for the rest of the album (the exception being "Blessed in Contempt" but even that is a stretch). Speed doesn't necessarily equal good, but Testament compensates well for the lack of speed with some of the narlyist guitar lines of ANY Testament album. (Just listen "Greenhouse Effect" and "Envy Life".)
The guitar work on the album is very accomplished and deserves much credit. The guitar work and the overall song writing are the album strong points. The bass lines shine in between the guitar solos. The Achilles heel of the album is the rather bland drumming (that 'click' instead of 'pound'). Louie has to be one of the most unoriginal forgettable drummers of the brief Thrash history.
Their creativity shines at the end of the album with "The Ballad" and the awesome acoustic guitars to that song. The instrumental song at the end is forgettable but even then it would be hard to call it bad. The one ultra-cheesy thing they do at the beginning of "Sins of Omission" is they play a kind of Knightrider theme chord.
Still a good album despite the differences between this album and the previous effort. It's not as much of a "shock-and-awe" oh-my-god-is-this-for-real? album as 'New Order'. Its more of a "let me sit down and think along with the music" kind of album. Worth having. 3 1/2 stars.
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