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My friend ACS and I have known each other since high school, December 1987, to be exact. Shortly after we broke for the holidays, we'd read the San Francisco Chronicle's "pink section," which was dedicated to entertainment. We perused the concert listings, and noticed that local thrash band Testament were playing some NYE shows.
As that school year came to an end, in May/June '88, one of our friends went over to the Stonestown Tower Records, and picked up Testament's The New Order on cassette, to which we listened via Walkmen and boomboxes. Indeed, that album sounded as if it had been recorded at one of S.F.'s concrete playgrounds or school yards.
In December 1989, Testament once again came home, and performed at The Warfield. To this day, that is still one of my wife's all-time favorite concerts.
In January 1991, Testament opened for Slayer at Oakland's Henry J. Kaiser auditorium. That is the largest venue I've ever seen Testament perform.
In that glorious summer of '92, ACS and I brought Testament's The Ritual with us to various Berkeley and Oakland audio stores.
At the end of 1994, it was actually rainy, here in the Bay Area. ACS and I had Testament's Low in her car. We drove up Coit Tower, shut off the car stereo, heard the raindrops drown out other sounds, and fogged up the windows. Nevertheless, whenever I hear Low, I can still sense and smell those wet streets.
In late '95, ACS and I were bowling partners at Japantown Bowl. After one night league, we drove out to Stonestown. At Tower Records, we spotted Testament's Live At The Fillmore. Featuring such S.F. landmarks as Coit Tower, the Palace Of Fine Arts, and the Peace Pagoda, Live At The Fillmore piqued our interest. Moreover, The Fillmore was just 3 blocks from Japantown Bowl, 3 blocks from my home.
We bought Live At The Fillmore (on CD), and continued shopping at Stonestown. Even though ACS still worked part-time at Victoria's Secret, no, we did not frequent that store. We then went to Westlake, where we had some kind of fast food. Man, I miss those nights!
When we got to her place, my old Sony and Adcom electronics were there. We used them, to listen to Live At The Fillmore. We had no idea what their set list was, but this album must have omitted several songs. Instead, three semi-acoustic remakes finish out Live At The Fillmore.
As we drove to various bowling alleys, some were up to 5 hours away. Though most tournaments or travel league houses were within a 2-hour drive, ACS kept Live At The Fillmore in her car. Did it remind us of home? Not really. Did it makes us bowl better? No. Did it make the journey more enjoyable? Hell yeah. I don't know what it was, but when Live At The Fillmore came to an end, and we'd check in to a motel, ACS would wonder why My So-Called Life (which was our favorite show) was canceled.
Live At The Fillmore does not sound harsh or grainy. It has a mid-90s sound, warm yet punchy. Very interesting are how the songs from Legacy and The New Order sound. Greg Christian's basslines are fluid. Guitarist James Murphy should be on your right, while Eric Petersen should be on your right. Lead singer Chuck Billy sounds neither thin nor fat. For this show, Jon Dette was the drummer, and here, he did a fine job.
It's too bad more songs from the concert set list weren't included on Live At The Fillmore. But as it stands, there is enough on Live At The Fillmore, that, almost 20 years later, it still gets onto my play list.
The Audiophiles' DJ,
-Lummy The Loch Monster
Follow Ups:
They are touring again, playing their first two releases in their entirety. Hopefully, I'll have another chance to photograph them. Pt/ I below.
Edits: 03/31/15
Pt. 2 below:
Really great photos, jamesgarvin.
nt
Lummy-
did you buy the "Low" SHD-CD?
They opened for Halford on his 'Crucible' tour and I attended the Chicago and Vegas shows. A few hours before the concert in Las Vegas I was wandering the casino floor of Mandalay Bay looking for a $5 craps table when I saw Chuck Billy rolling the dice. (He's hard to miss). I said a quick hello and that I was looking forward to the show. He gave me a huge grin and said thanks for coming. The concert was really great and despite not being a huge fan of Testament I enjoyed the music. Halford was as always absolutely fantastic.
Thanks! for sharing.
Thanks! for sharing.
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