The Formation of Damnation
Studio album by
Testament
ReleasedApril 29, 2008
Recorded2007–2008
StudioFantasy Studios, Berkeley, California
GenreThrash metal
Length49:29
LabelNuclear Blast
ProducerEric Peterson, Chuck Billy
Testament chronology
The Spitfire Collection
(2007)		 The Formation of Damnation
(2008)		 Live at Eindhoven '87
(2009)

The Formation of Damnation is the tenth studio album by American thrash metal band Testament, released on April 29, 2008. It was Testament's first album since 2001's First Strike Still Deadly and their first of new material since 1999's The Gathering. It was also Testament's first release with original guitarist Alex Skolnick since 1992's The Ritual and bassist Greg Christian since 1994's Low, as well as the band's only studio album recorded with drummer Paul Bostaph, who joined Testament in 1993 but became a full-time member in 2007 before leaving the band four years later.

The follow-up to The Gathering was first mentioned in 2002[1] and was originally scheduled for release in early 2004,[2] but was not completed yet. Due to the band's touring schedule and line-up changes, the album was put on hold for a number of years before being completed in 2007/2008.

Background information

Testament first mentioned their follow-up to The Gathering in May 2002, stating that guitarist Eric Peterson was busy writing new material for the album that would take "little more time since The Gathering" and be "a challenging act to follow".[1] It was also confirmed that the album would be brutal "with a lot of dual lead trade-offs between guitarists Peterson and (then-guitarist) Steve Smyth."

On February 15, 2004, it was announced that drummer Paul Bostaph, a former member of Forbidden and Slayer, would join the band to record the album.[3] It was also announced that the band was planning on entering the studio in April/May, with an intended release date of late 2004. The band posted a long update about progress on the album in October 2004. It was revealed that Peterson recovered from a triple fracture and leg surgery and was able to travel and work with the band again.[4]

In February 2005, Testament manager Phil Arnold of Thrill Entertainment issued an update on the band's then-current and upcoming activities, commenting that the band had reopened their studios, which were closed while Billy received treatment for cancer, at a new location in Pittsburg, California.[5] In September 2006, Alex Skolnick, who had rejoined the band in 2005 and replaced Smyth, stated that the band would return to the studio in early 2007 to resume work on the new album. He revealed that material was "sketched out" for the new album.[6]

In February 2007, Billy stated that the band planned to enter the studio in April. He revealed that the band had four "really great" songs, and hoped to have the rest of the material ready within a few months.[7] In March 2007, Peterson announced that the band was working with drummer Nicholas Barker on some of the material.[8] In June, Billy announced that eight or nine songs were being worked on.[9] The same month, the band signed with a new label, Nuclear Blast, and announced a March 2008 release date for the album.[10] The title was revealed in November 2007,[11] which was followed shortly thereafter by an announcement that the album's release date had been postponed to April 29, 2008.[12]

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
About.com[13]
Allmusic[14]
Blabbermouth.net9/10[15]
IGN8.4/10[16]
Rock Hard9.0/10[17]
Sputnikmusic4/5[18]

The Formation of Damnation was well received. The album debuted at number 59 on the Billboard 200, selling 11,900 copies in its first week. It won the "Best Album" award at Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards ceremony in 2008, beating albums by Atreyu, Avenged Sevenfold, Children of Bodom and Down.[19] They later named it the 4th best album of 2008 in their end-of year top 50 albums list. In addition, Metal-Rules.com voted it the best metal album of 2008.[20] It was also awarded with the 2008 Metal Storm Award for Best Thrash Metal Album.

"More Than Meets the Eye" was released as an official DLC for the Rock Band series, while "Henchmen Ride" was released separately on the Rock Band Network. By July 2012, The Formation of Damnation has sold over 84,000 copies in the US,[21] and as of November 2011 it had sold around 300,000 copies worldwide.[22]

Track listing

No.TitleLyricsMusicLength
1."For the Glory Of..." (instrumental) Eric Peterson1:12
2."More than Meets the Eye"Chuck Billy, Del JamesBilly, Peterson4:31
3."The Evil Has Landed"Billy, Steve SouzaBilly, Peterson4:44
4."The Formation of Damnation"Billy, SouzaBilly, Peterson5:10
5."Dangers of the Faithless"Billy, Del JamesBilly, Peterson, Alex Skolnick5:47
6."The Persecuted Won't Forget"Billy, SouzaBilly, Peterson5:49
7."Henchmen Ride"BillyBilly, Peterson4:00
8."Killing Season"Billy, SouzaBilly, Peterson4:52
9."Afterlife"Billy, SouzaBilly, Peterson4:13
10."F.E.A.R." ("False Evidence Appearing Real")Alex SkolnickSkolnick4:46
11."Leave Me Forever"Billy, SouzaBilly, Greg Christian, Peterson4:28
Total length:49:29

Personnel

Credits are adopted from the album's liner notes.[23]

Charts

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[24] 23
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[25] 62
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[26] 89
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[27] 47
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[28] 12
French Albums (SNEP)[29] 95
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[30] 15
Italian Albums (FIMI)[31] 87
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[32] 42
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[33] 29
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[34] 27
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[35] 33
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[36] 8
UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[37] 6
US Billboard 200[38] 59
US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[39] 4
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[40] 16
US Top Tastemaker Albums (Billboard)[41] 5

References

  1. 1 2 "Testament: Next Album Will Be Brutal". Blabbermouth.net. May 17, 2002. Archived from the original on March 19, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  2. ↑ "Testament: European Festival Appearances Announced". Blabbermouth.net. December 14, 2003. Archived from the original on December 23, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  3. ↑ "Former Slayer Drummer Paul Bostaph Joins Testament". Blabbermouth.net. February 15, 2004. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  4. ↑ "Testament: In Recording Mode". Blabbermouth.net. October 12, 2004. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  5. ↑ "Testament's New Recording Studio Is Haunted". Blabbermouth.net. February 8, 2005. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  6. ↑ "Testament To Work On New Studio Album In Early 2007". Blabbermouth.net. September 1, 2006. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  7. ↑ "Testament Still Deadly - Part 1: An Interview With Chuck Billy". KNAC.com. February 12, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  8. ↑ "Testament To Enter Studio In June". Blabbermouth.net. March 7, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  9. ↑ "Testament Frontman New Material Is 'Very Heavy'". Ultimate-Guitar.com. June 25, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  10. ↑ "Testament Signs With Nuclear Blast Records". Blabbermouth.net. June 28, 2007. Archived from the original on February 15, 2009. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  11. ↑ "Testament: New Album Title Announced". Blabbermouth.net. November 15, 2007. Archived from the original on December 13, 2007. Retrieved November 18, 2007.
  12. ↑ "Testament: New Album Release Date Announced". Blabbermouth.net. December 7, 2007. Archived from the original on December 13, 2007. Retrieved December 7, 2007.
  13. ↑ Bowar, Chad. "Testament - The Formation of Damnation Review". About.com. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  14. ↑ Prato, Greg. "The Formation of Damnation - Testament". Allmusic. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  15. ↑ Bergman, Keith (May 19, 2008). "Testament - The Formation of Damnation". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  16. ↑ Kaz, Jim (May 2, 2008). "Testament - The Formation of Damnation Review". IGN. Archived from the original on March 7, 2009. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  17. ↑ Schnädelback, Buffo. "Testament - The Formation Of Damnation". Rock Hard (in German). Retrieved February 12, 2023.
  18. ↑ Spencer, Trey (May 20, 2008). "Testament - The Formation of Damnation". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved May 21, 2012.
  19. ↑ "METAL HAMMER GOLDEN GODS AWARDS: Complete List of Winners". June 17, 2008.
  20. ↑ "Zine - BEST OF 2008". Metal-Rules.com. Archived from the original on January 3, 2010.
  21. ↑ "Testament Digs In With "Dark Roots Of Earth"". Billboard. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  22. ↑ "Eric Peterson Teases New Testament Album - in Interviews". Metal Underground.com. Retrieved January 24, 2017.
  23. ↑ The Formation of Damnation liner notes. Nuclear Blast Records. 2008. p. 2.
  24. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Testament – The Formation of Damnation" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  25. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Testament – The Formation of Damnation" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  26. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Testament – The Formation of Damnation" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  27. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Testament – The Formation of Damnation" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  28. ↑ "Testament: The Formation of Damnation" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  29. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Testament – The Formation of Damnation". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  30. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Testament – The Formation of Damnation" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  31. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Testament – The Formation of Damnation". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  32. ↑ "テスタメントのアルバム売上ランキング". Oricon.co.jp. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  33. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Testament – The Formation of Damnation". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  34. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Testament – The Formation of Damnation". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  35. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Testament – The Formation of Damnation". Hung Medien. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  36. ↑ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  37. ↑ "Official Rock & Metal Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  38. ↑ "Testament Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  39. ↑ "Testament Chart History (Top Hard Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  40. ↑ "Testament Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
  41. ↑ "Testament Chart History (Top Tastemaker Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved November 8, 2023.
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