TESTAMENT

The Spitfire Collection

Spitfire
rating icon zero / 10

Track listing:

01. The New Order (live)
02. Souls of Black (live)
03. Practice What You Preach (live)
04. Hatreds Rise
05. The Burning Times
06. John Doe
07. Careful What You Wish For
08. Down For Life
09. Riding the Snake
10. Over the Wall
11. The Preacher
12. Into the Pit (live)
13. Trial By Fire (live)
14. Disciples of the Watch (live)


First and foremost, let it be known that the stone-cold zero (NA) rating above has nothing to do with TESTAMENT as a musical entity, or about the music on this CD. You'd have to be a dick not to show some respect for their (ahem) legacy — they're one of the few bands of their age that's improved with age, and 1999's The Gathering remains arguably their best album. As the best of the second tier Bay Area thrash bands, they skated right up to the edge of mainstream acceptance, faltered in that realm, but then came back heavier and stronger, becoming grizzled, likable metal veterans.

But while we're speaking of respect, can we ask that the band's various labels show some to their catalog, and stop dry-humping it? Live albums, too many best-of collections, re-recorded early tracks... the only trick the band hasn't pulled yet is a covers LP, and I wouldn't put it past them. "The Spitfire Collection" chronicles a decade of intermittent triumphs followed by years of frustrating delays and bad news (most notably singer Chuck Billy's cancer scare) — it encompasses a whopping two studio albums, plus two live records and the disc of re-recorded classics. Songs like "Practice What You Preach" and "Souls of Black", already beaten to death on other best-of's and recycled on live recordings, are now re-recycled here, along with a seemingly random selection of tunes from "Demonic" and "The Gathering". The music is great — you should own both of these albums already if you consider yourself a metal fan — but what's the point of this sloppy mix tape?

It's not exactly a crime against humanity or anything, but it still sucks when a band ends up with as many compilations in their discography as there are legitimate studio albums. It's confusing for new fans, and it's a burden for diehards who feel obligated to buy every piece of shit a junior intern compiles and sends off to the mastering plant. Hell, even the band has made their displeasure known about this most recent tug at the udder. Buying "The Spitfire Collection" does no one any good, save for a coupla bright bulbs in marketing who pride themselves on finding new ways to make you pay for the same shit twice (or more). Is that what you wanna do with your fifteen bucks?

Go buy whatever TESTAMENT album you still don't have, instead of supporting this hosejob. You know you're missing at least one. Say yes to real albums, and continue the wait for new music from Chuck and Eric, but say no to getting shaken down in the name of loyalty to your favorite acts.

Author:
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).