It wouldn't be a cranked and ranked without Eddie doing a Dave Mustaine impression. Love it.

DEMONIC is so fuckin' underrated

Great review guys! looking forward to part 2.

Excellent part 1 on Chuck Billy and the dudes, top job. Regarding your Ratt Cranked & Ranked episode, Robin Crosby was the main riff writer from the EP through to Invasion of your Privacy. Between Invasion and Dancing Undercover was when Crosby's drug use took hold so from Dancing Undercover onwards Warren DeMartini had to take over writing the riffs. Best regards, Gary in the UK.

The Big 4 is what it is. I think it's time we had a tour with the "Other big 4". Testament, Exodus, Over Kill, Sacred Reich and the opening band can be Death Angel.

Liked before I listened, but it's TESTAMENT!!! 🤘

THANK YOU!! I totally agree with switching out Testament for Slayer.👍🤘😎

Another great episode. Congratulations! Looking forward for the part 2. By the way, The Gathering is in my top 3 and I'm a nice person

Kick ass - Testament was way overdue for Cranked & Ranked! Thanks guys, looking forward to part 2. 🤘

Great show guys! But I have to admit I love all Slayers solos. Jeff said that world painted blood 1 your referring to as being Kerry's, was actually Jeff's most physically demanding solo of his whole entire career he said.

I completely agree with everything you said about demonic, cuz Id probably put it around the same place on my list. It would be much higher if chuck did more with his vocals like in john doe which is one of my favourite testament songs

Nice rankings guys! I like Old Head view on The Gathering. It sounds to me the fact that Lombardo is the drummer might have overstated the ranking of some people. Looking forward part 2. It’s quite unbelievable that the majority of the album you will talk have been done over a 5 years cycle (87/92). Looking forward to see where will land The Formation of Damnation (great album!).

12- Dark Roots Of Earth: Testament can do no wrong but IMO this album is quite predictable when you already listened to so many incarnations of Testament. To be fair I've only heard it when it came out and then came back to it just a couple of times and it simply didn't grabbed me. Far from being bad (it's Testament) but taking in account what to expect from the band it falls to the bottom bracket. 11- The Formation Of Damnation: When the news came out that the classic line up was reuniting I kinda got pumped. Apart from 2 standout tracks in the form of More Than Meets The Eye and The Evil Has Landed it kinda suffers from the same handicap its successor does: although being well played it's too damn inside the box. Yet once again great quality standard but that's not enough to get me 100% hooked. 10- The Ritual: This one's a bit more accessible and the only record from the 90's that gives me the same feeling from #11 and #12, that lack of empathy. I even disliked this album when it came out but with the passing of time I came to fancy it more and more some songs, especially So Many Lies, Let Go Of My World; Agony or even the radio friendly Electric Crown. Nevertheless it still remains as one of my least favorite efforts by the band. 9- Brotherhood Of The Snake: DiGiorgio returned to the band and one can notice immediately an increase of power and pace. The first two songs are really top notch Testament. The majority of the remaining tracks are a bit less achieved IMO and, although the heaviness and speed still remains untouched until the end, I can't say the same about my interest (once again the same problem above and yes... some recycling). Still it's a nice thing to see the boys injecting a bit more of adrenaline into their sound. 8- Practice What You Preach: Testament's 3rd album features a truly amazing song in the title track. The Ballad is also on hell of a composition and I also like Nightmare a lot. Then apart from a couple of other tunes rest of the tracks are merely ok. Not that they are forgettable or something. Quite the opposite, I can remember every single main riff of every track. But when compared with the other "Old Testament" recordings they have way less to rediscover IMO. So, besides being an uncompromising easy listening thrasher (perhaps too much) and featuring 2 amazing tracks and a classic, overall this album ran out of juice too fast for my taste. Quite catchy, though. 7- Demonic: This is perhaps Testament's heaviest incarnation where the dividing line between Thrash and Death metal really blurs except in one aspect that shocked lots of the band's fundamentalist fans: Chuck's exclusively guttural vocals. Other than that this record is simply massive with bombards such as Demonic Refusal, The Burning Times, John Doe, 10000 Thrones, Murky Waters and Distorted Lives being heavy as black holes. On the least positive side the pace of the composition is way too similar and, after a couple of spins, one may get a bit bored regarding the lack of variation in cadence. But hey... even so a bold move and a quite enjoyable record. 6- Titans Of Creation: As Testament's third phase unfolds things get better and better: WWIII, Symptoms, False Prophet, The Healers and Code Of Hammurabi are monster thrashers that really can do no wrong. And if it's true DiGiorgio and Hogland always preformed amazingly in former Testament albums this is undoubtedly their finest hour with the band. Yes it also features some recycling and it's also a bit predictable here and there. Finally I must single out Curse Of Osiris and especially Night Of The Witch as my favorite tunes here. Superb stuff indeed. 5- Souls Of Black: I think Souls Of Black is a clear twin album regarding its predecessor. Better said is an improved version IMO: the songs are more complex and rich without losing its almost immediate hooks that make them hanging in your mind. Face In The Sky kicks off in great fashion and Falling Fast continues that task in great fashion. The title song is absurdly good and even The Legacy reminds us a lot of the equally great The Ballad. Love to Hate is something that could easily be released on their first two records (which is always a compliment) while Malpractice is an excellent exercise in great time signatures and one of my favorite tracks here. Seven Days Of May closes the album on an high note and we're left assured we just listened to a tight as nails record that doesn't contain a single mediocre song. That alone says a lot about its quality. 4- The Legacy: Testament's first album is simply one of Thrash Metal's best debuts ever. Why? If you need me to explain it after listening to songs such as Over The Wall, Burnt Offering, COTLOD, First Strike Is Deadly, Do Or Die or Apocalyptic City then there's something seriously wrong with you! BTW an unpopular opinion: although I love the original versions I think this albums' tunes are even better on First Strike Still Deadly with the same working for The New Order ones (a rare case where a remaking record perfects the original IMO ... yeah I must be one of the few persons in the galaxy that feels this way). 3- The Gathering: DiGiorgio, Lombardo and Murphy... Just by checking the personnel Chuck and Eric hired to make this beast one could easily foresee what was to come. Yeah it could be a fiasco but this damn thing just kicks in with one the most furious tracks ever penned by the band in DNR, continues relentlessly trough Down For Life and when it takes its foot of the pedal is only to stutter between hypnotic ambiances and stomping bursts of megalithic brute force in Eyes Of Wrath. This thing is filled with off the charts material of all kind. From the crushing 3 Days Of Darkness and Sewn Eyes Shut to the Death Metal speed of Legion Of The Dead and Fall Of Sipledome what Testament offers us here is really close to perfection. 2- The New Order: One of the most difficult things for a band to achieve is recording an album that can live up to an immensely acclaimed debut. Testament not only made that but they easily topped it. Take as examples the title track, Into The Pit, Eerie Inhabitants, Trial By Fire or the absolute blaster that is Disciples Of The Watch. Somehow a young band managed their songs to sound even more mature, worked out, sounding even heavier. The minor complaint I have on this absolutely classic release is the fact the last 3 songs, while being reasonably great, coming way short when paired with the rest of the build (especially the cover version). But that alone is a detail in the greatness of this beast of a record and if you don't like this you don't like metal... it's that simple. 1- Low: I know it's a odd pick but Low is (IMO) the best written album among Testament's amazing catalogue and simply features the heaviest riffs Mr. Peterson has ever invented. It may not be the most spectacular and shinny overall but when it comes to systematic top notch quality nothing tops this record in my book. And they did it during a period when the band seemed to be running out of ideas and lost one of the band's key members in Skolnick. Secondly it features my favorite song by the band in the title track. Then all the different faces of Testament are displayed here in absolutely pristine fashion. Want solid mid tempo crushers? Take All I Could Bleed or Legions In Hiding. You prefer something more in the vein of the band's traditional sound? Have some Shades Of War or Hail Mary. Plus there's groundbreaking material in the form of the death metal like Dog Faced Gods or the jamming in Urotsukidoji. Plus Dave is my favorite record cover artist. So, everything in this album is so varied and yet so massive and energetic when compared to the majority of what the great names of 80's metal were doing back in the mid 90's (or even Testament themselves some years before) that my number one pick is without shadow of doubt LOW.

Great Point @ 1:20min or so... I was at Rudy's BBQ a few mrngs ago, this country song sounded metal/rock during it's guitar solo, told my coworker, oh snap, this is very Metal, right away, I was given a confused look, LoL... But Yes!!! I hear it in pop music and country...

Great show! Looking forward to pt 2. Brotherhood of the Snake is my least favorite. In regard to the loudness wars, I feel it really began because of the rise of the mp3 players (iPods) with their cheap earbuds. Kids listening to songs while on a bus or subway, etc couldn't drown out the background noise and record companies picked up on that. Plus trying to outdo the latest hit on the radio.

I’m a Testament fan but there are some albums I still haven’t heard, gonna have to fill in the gaps real soon because every album I have heard is great! I’m only a few years older than Eddie so I got into them in a weird place (Low, which I still love to this day) and kind of jumped around randomly from there. Anyway great video as always, I like the long format but I guess some people just don’t have the time. I’m lucky enough to have a job where I can listen to music or this type of stuff for 6-7 hours 5 days a week! Finally, I might be interested in one of those mugs but you said there are no holes in it. I’m just wondering if there’s one in the top so you can pour liquids into and out of it…if there is then I’ll most likely order one. Thanks again! Later dudes 🤘🤘

Please do Deicide. They get a lot of shit for doing a few bad albums, their shtick being a little much, and Glen being like the offspring of a Camero and an alligator, but they have some real bangers, and I know it will be almost as funny as the Cannibal Corpse episode.

I always thought thought no way Testament should be in Big 5, Exodus should! But then I truly discovered the amazing and melodic Testament, and now I completely 180°. Testament needs to be in big 5 for sure. Testament >>>>>> Exodus

Now we're talkin

Love the C&R rankings. How about Kreator? One of the big German 4

The new order top or we riot

Interesting reappraisal of Demonic… it’s a testament to Testament their such a hard band to rank… serious depth in quality…

Been a Fan since i saw em live in 87 supporting anthrax... looking back today i think they are the best thrash band out there. That beeing said, i feel like everytime i think about a ranking it changes... for years Practice was my favorite. Than i felt like gathering is... or is it still their debut? Formation is killer... love low... and i really think titans belongs high up there, for having everything Testament on it plus some Borderline black metal kind of vocals which i really dig the way they deliver it... I can only say that the Ritual is the one i go to the least. Dig it, but for me its the most generic Album? And souls of Black, was just more of the same back then to me... not bad by any means like every Testament album. But yes, i like others a bit more i guess. So i think every ranking is just perfect. I always feel like Eric peterson is a bit overshadowed by mr skolnik. Sure that guy on lead guitar is very special, but the backbone of this band is Eric together with chuck... he writes the Songs and brings on the riffs and yes, he tells skolnik what to play as Alex said himself. So far... oh... and if you would exchange one of the big 4 for Testament, now it comes🤣 i would chose anthrax. I only like 4 of their Albums (duck and cover) What about this: big 4 of thrash Slayer Testament Exodus Kreator Big 4 of metal: metallica iron maiden megadeth judas priest Yes i know.. the big 4 had nothing to do with a Genre. It was just the 4 bands that were the big players in metal at a certain time period... what most ppl dont see Way too much to talk about here🤣 so i better stop and hope anything makes some sense. Great show as always guys. Wait... who put Formation down there? Why do i feel reminded of some misfits ranking 🤔😉👍

I can't lie, I just can't get into any of their albums since the reunion. One of the safest bands in the history of music. Even safer than Slayer! Alex is a great guitarist of course but Testament is only a paycheck to him. He contributes very little to the song writing and his solos sounds like he's just making sure he is playing all the "right notes" but no passion and not memorable. I know Andy Sneap is a talented guy but I haven't been a huge fan of his sound for awhile now.

I agree and I'll take it further I would make it a big 5 take out slayer add testament and overkill. And I like slayer but they are a little overrated.