Review by Shadowdoom9 (Andi) for Pestilence - Testimony of the Ancients (1991)
Two thrashy death metal albums into their career, Dutch band Pestilence decided to test out conjuring a more melodic-ish technical spell in their sound with their 3rd album Testimony of the Ancients. The aggravated atonality of hatred in the genre is expanded by some experimentation. Besides the more technical guitars and bass, the drums are close to Slayer's style, fast while far from blast beats, and there are extreme vocals, slightly surpassing Obituary and Death.
Notably, the album has an interesting structure of full songs that are each followed by a short instrumental, something Cynic would similarly do 3 decades later in Ascension Codes. Both track categories have a horror element, probably more of that than most of the other early 90s tech-death albums I've reviewed. Obscure riffs play amongst atmospheric power chords and dramatic synths, with some experimental groove to remind some of Morbid Angel. The eerie interludes have the most of the horror feeling, whether it's the Psycho-ish strings, screams over dissonant keyboards, or church ambiance. I won't talk about the interludes, though they don't detract the album's perfection.
You can hear the horror right away in the aptly titled "The Secrecies of Horror". The high-level melodic soloing are what highlight "Twisted Truth" with a dreamy solo that would hint their stylistic follow-up Spheres. The atmospheric flow in the interludes would continue on after that shining aggression. "Lost Souls" clearly shows vocalist Patrick Mameli having the bravery to growl through a straight fast deadly-for-your-neck headbanger.
"Land of Tears" is the best example of explosive metal soloing genius as a complementary contrast between melody and death metal. The Morbid Angel-like grooves appear most notably in "Prophetic Revelations".
"Testimony" adds a different good shade of sound. "Presence of the Dead" explores more explicit horror lyrical themes than before in the album. The most progressive leads, as progressive as Dream Theater, come in "Stigmatized". There's even Maiden-inspired guitar melody appearing twice. Then after one more melodic interlude that sounds a little uplifting and would fit better in a melodic progressive metal album, Dream Theater or otherwise, the horror is over.
All in all, Pestilence had made a tech-death work of art in Testimony of the Ancients. Just the album cover and title alone is enough to intimidate and convince you. There's a perfect balance between ritual-sounding and ravaging, alternating between full songs and interludes. Any fan of the genre can identify any of these tracks in a blink of an eye!
Favorites: "Twisted Truth", "Lost Souls", "Land of Tears", "Stigmatized"