TESTAMENT
THE NEW ORDER
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There are some albums in the annals of Thrash metal history that are considered “art”: timeless, heavy, classic and almost perfect. Testament released one of those pieces of art and it is known as “The New Order”; one of THE finest thrash releases of one of THE finest years of thrash: 1988!!!
JOIN US as we get into the “eerie” space in thrash that Testament inhabits with The New Order. We’ll go deep down into the mystical shamanistical rabbit hole that gave us (and again, we really can’t stress this enough) one of THE finest moments of thrash metal EVER!!
CHUCK BILLY - VOCALS
ALEX SKOLNICK - GUITAR
ERIC PETERSON - GUITAR, COVER ART CONCEPT
GREG CHRISTIAN - BASS
LOUIE CLEMENTE - DRUMS
ALEX PERIALAS - PRODUCER, ENGINEER, MIXER
JON & MARSHA ZAZULA - EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS
TOM COYNE - MASTERING
ROBERT HUNTER - ASSISTANT ENGINEER
ANDY MEYN - PHOTOGRAPHY
WILLIAM BENSON - ARTWORK
RECORDED AT PYRAMID SOUND STUDIOS, ITHACA, NY 1987-88
RELEASED MAY 5, 1988 ON ATLANTIC/MEGAFORCE
Alex Perialas is a record producer, engineer and mixer best known for his extensive work during Thrash’s golden years. He still owns and operates Pyramid Sound Studios also runs the Sound Recording Technology Program at Ithaca College in NY. Artists that he’s worked with include Metallica, Anthrax, Raven, Exciter, Overkill, S.O.D., Nuclear Assault, M.O.D., Carnivore, Agnostic Front, Flotsam & Jetsam, Vio-lence, Wrathchild America, Piece Dogs, Joe Bonamassa & Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad.
Jon Zazula is owner of Rock N Roll Heaven record store in NJ and founder of Megaforce Records which he started to release the works of Metallica. He is a central figure in the East Coast Music scene and organized Metallica’s first tours. His wife Marsha is partner/co-founder of Megaforce Records.
Tom Coyne has done an insane amount of work, mostly in hip hop and R&B, but has dabbled in just about every conceivable music genre there is. A few highlights are The Rolling Stones, Kool & the Gang, Billy Ocean, James Brown, A Flock of Seagulls, Mercyful Fate, GBH, Exciter, Agent Steel, Nuclear Assault, Overkill, Buster Poindexter, Agnostic Front, Sepultura, Deicide, Kid Rock, Sade, House of Pain, The Roots, Mind Funk, Snot, Britney Spears, Galactic, Def Leppard, Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars.
Robert Hunter started out as the drummer for Raven from 1979 to 1987. He then began producing, engineering and mixing records. He’s worked with artists such as Voivod, Overkill, M.O.D., Flotsam & Jetsam, Branford Marsalis, Pro-Pain, Albert Collins, Piece Dogs, Gov’t Mule, and many others. At one point he was Branford Marsalis traveling audio mixer.
Couldn’t really find any info on Andy Meyn.
Bill Benson also did the album artwork for The New Order, Practice What You Preach, Souls of Black, The Ritual and The Very Best of Testament. Can’t find any more info.
TRACK LISTING :
1 EERIE INHABITANTS 5:06
2 THE NEW ORDER 4:25
3 TRIAL BY FIRE 4:14
4 INTO THE PIT 2:46
5 HYPNOSIS (INSTRUMENTAL) 2:04
6 DISCIPLES OF THE WATCH 5:05
7 THE PREACHER 3:37
8 NOBODY’S FAULT 3:57
9 A DAY OF RECKONING 4:00
10 MUSICAL DEATH (A DIRGE) (INSTRUMENTAL) 4:05
US Billboard 200, peaked at 136 and stayed on the chart for 13 weeks, their longest chart run - The German Offizielle Top 100 at 49 - and The UK Albums charts at 81.
Had sold over 250,000 copies
by 1990.
Revolver put it in their August 2014 “14 Thrash Albums You Need To Own”
They toured Europe with Megadeth, Sanctuary, Flotsam & Jetsam and Nuclear Assault. Then they embarked on a US tour with support from Vio-lence, Forbidden, Voivod, Sanctuary, Destruction, Overkill, Nuclear Assault, Carnivore, Death Angel and Atheist. They then replaced Megadeth on the Monsters Of Rock European tour. Then work began on Practice What You Preach.
Alex Skolnick recounts of the album recording process:
We barely got done with our first couple of tours on that first album cycle when we were informed we have to have another album, soon! [...] We got spooked in a way, because we never had to come up with music on the fly. [...] By the time we finally recorded the album, we neglected to look at our recording contract. We actually had it in our contract that there's a minimum of 40 minutes of music, and we clocked in under that! [...] Our album was promptly sent back...we added the Aerosmith tune, we added those little instrumentals, we extended a couple of sections...that was all done so we wouldn't be in breach of contract.
— Alex Skolnick, 2013 via Metal Injection.
Something to check out for craps and giggles, Into The Pit as covered by The Absence on their 2007 album Riders Of The Plague. The Preacher was covered by Hell’s Thrash Horsemen on their 2009 EP ...Till Violence.
00.00: Intro/All the listening excitement of a yawning sloth/Caffeine, Slayer and proper Slayer listening etiquette/It’s all in the air…
04.13: 1988: Testament’s The New Order/ #softintroreprise #savageadam / The “eerie”ness that inhabits the mighty Testament sound and album art/Milley gets emotional when touched on his shakra
08.47: Same technical personnel as The Legacy: Alex Perialas (aka Alex Paralysis), Johnny and Marsha Zazula, Tom Coyne and the rest of the Magical Wizard People of the Liger, Robert Hunter (drummer from Raven!)/Andy Meyn (photographer) /Bill Benson (the Derek Riggs of Testament)/Testament chart positions and notable points
14.54: The New Order tour with Megadeth, Sanctuary, Flotsam and Jetsam, Nuclear Assault, Vio-Lence, Forbidden, Voivod, Sanctionary, Destruction, Carnivore, Death Angel, Athiest/the word is Wizardery/Monsters of Rock European tour
18.07: The Recording process and the fine print “minimum”/Testament’s multiple tour stops in ATL
21.17: The Tracks: Eerie inhabitants (the perfect ominous opener)/Chuck Billy IS #shamanmetal /The shredtastical awesomeness of Alex Skolnick/Accentuation: a pricey word (and a bargain word to follow it)
26.45: The New Order (more magically eerie Testament creepiness)/Maiden influence/C.O.T.L.O.S.
30.13: Trial by Fire (still more eerie riffy goodness)/And now, a word from Nigel Nigelson…
34.12: Into the Pit (Flangie)/Another graduate of the Joe Satriani school of shredtastical awesomeness!!/ The 1st instrumental: the eerie shreddy witchiness of Hypnosis
38.17: Disciples of the Watch (Track 1, Side 2)/Killer intro and Killer riffs/Overall more depth in the Production/Definite Iron Maiden influence (kudos and commendments)/Low End Movement and The Diarrhea Resistance
42.34: The Preacher (the Pre-Pterodactyl scream)/Who’s fault was it? (Nobody’s Fault…Aerosmith)/ #getyourwings /tangentionally tangential comment regarding Testament’s cover of The Scorpions’ Sails of Charon (#magicalmetal)
47.48: Day of Reckoning (the archetype of the thrash metal sound), Metal Nerdery tracking analysis of Side 2 and the Reshuffled tracklisting (The Anals and The Buttholes)
51.28: The 2nd instrumental - Musical Death (A Dirge): a dedication to Cliff Burton (RIP)/CONTINUE TO SPREAD THE WORDERY ABOUT METAL NERDERY/Drop us a line, write us a letter, give us some kudos and commendments (and condiments, if you like), purchase some swag (we might have a loincloth/pasta partnership in the works…stay tuned), and help grow the GLOBAL Metal Nerdery Syndicate!!! metalnerdery.com/merch