TESTAMENT — The Ritual (review)

TESTAMENT — The Ritual album cover Album · 1992 · Thrash Metal Buy this album from MMA partners
2.5/5 ·
Stooge
Testament, like many thrash bands of the time, took an album to streamline their sound into something closer to mainstream rock. The accessibility is evident through much of The Ritual’s material, but scattered throughout are still some thrashy songs, such as “Agony” and “Let Go Of My World”, though my favorite tracks here are the moodier ones that make greater departures from Testament's core sound.

By far, the standout track on this album is the wonderful ballad “Return To Serenity”. It’s one of Testament’s greatest tracks, and I’d rank it highly among ballads played by thrash metal bands. In fact, it’s so good that it often makes a great deal of the songs on the album less memorable by comparison.

The main quality this album lacks versus other Testament albums is in memorable riffing, with a few exceptions. On the other hand, Alex Skolnick’s lead playing, in my mind, is what gives the album most of it’s replay value. The energy level is lower than on the band’s thrashier albums, but this album has Skolnick playing in a style that takes a slight departure from the band’s earlier works. Some of his more memorable playing falls on the songs “Electric Crown”, “As The Season’s Grey”, and “Return To Serenity”, which at times reminds me of sax lines.

For an album with mainstream ambition, I have to add that the mix is often a bit muddy, and the vocals don’t always come through with clarity, especially in the faster songs. It also could use some more bass presence. It’s not bad enough to turn me off the album, but it could sound much better.

The Ritual makes for a solid, but not a spectacular purchase.
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UMUR wrote:
more than 2 years ago
Good description of the sound production. Spot on!
Diogenes wrote:
more than 2 years ago
Yeah, this one's definitely their worst. Skolnick is pretty boss though.

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