TESTAMENT announces remastered versions of 'The Legacy' and 'The New Order'

[SexxAtraxxion]

https://blabbermouth.net/news/testament ... -new-order

San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal pioneers TESTAMENT have announced an explosive celebration of the band's enduring legacy and their influential presence in the thrash metal scene. On July 12, TESTAMENT will release the remastered versions of their seminal albums "The Legacy" and "The New Order" both digitally and on vinyl via Nuclear Blast Records.

TESTAMENT singer Chuck Billy states: "When 'The Legacy' and 'The New Order' were first recorded, we were new and had limited resources to record the albums being a young band. Now, with the remastering, fans will hear the albums in their signature sonic onslaught they were intended to be heard."

Today, the band offers fans previews of the remastered versions completed by Justin Shturtz at Sterling Sound via singles from each of the albums. "Over The Wall" from "The Legacy (Remastered 2024)" and "Into The Pit" from "The New Order (Remastered 2024)" are now available to be streamed on all platforms as well as a video visualizer.

"The Legacy" remastered track listing:

01. Over The Wall (Remastered 2024)
02. The Haunting (Remastered 2024)
03. Burnt Offerings (Remastered 2024)
04. Raging Waters (Remastered 2024)
05. C.O.T.L.O.D. (Remastered 2024)
06. First Strike Is Deadly (Remastered 2024)
07. Do or Die (Remastered 2024)
08. Alone In The Dark (Remastered 2024)
09. Apocalyptic City (Remastered 2024)

"The Legacy" was remastered by Justin Shturtz at Sterling Sound. It will be available digitally and on 180-gram vinyl on red and white swirl with black splatter (limited to 1500 worldwide). The release includes alternate cover artwork and gatefold packaging with new liner notes as well it includes an oversized booklet with never-before-seen images.

"The New Order" remastered track listing:

01. Eerie Inhabitants (Remastered 2024)
02. The New Order (Remastered 2024)
03. Trial By Fire (Remastered 2024)
04. Into The Pit (Remastered 2024)
05. Hypnosis (Remastered 2024)
06. Disciples Of The Watch (Remastered 2024)
07. The Preacher (Remastered 2024)
08. Nobody's Fault (Remastered 2024)
09. A Day Of Reckoning (Remastered 2024)
10. Musical Death (A Dirge) (Remastered 2024)

"The New Order" was remastered by Justin Shturtz at Sterling Sound. It will be available digitally and on 180-gram vinyl on blue and purple swirl with black splatter (limited to 1500 worldwide). The release includes alternate cover artwork and gatefold packaging with new liner notes as well it includes an oversized booklet with never-before-seen images.

This fall, the "Klash Of The Titans" makes its triumphant return to North America. Fans will enjoy an epic night of metal with thrash royalty TESTAMENT and KREATOR co-headlining the run. The 33-date trek will kick off on September 12 in Reno making its way across the U.S. and will include seven Canadian dates before concluding in San Francisco on October 27. Joining the night are special guests Bay Area death metal pioneers and labelmates POSSESSED.

[Hellbound]

WTF?

The New Order on vinyl didn't have the Aerosmith cover (Nobody's Fault) or an old Testament tune called Reign of Terror which was recorded at that time.

Both those songs are on the Trail By Fire single.

If you are going to do a re-release, why not put together stuff like that? Seems like the most simplest logical thing especially in the day and age when hardly anyone is buying physical product.

[Psychobolia.com]

I listened to the two snippets on Bladdermouth yesterday...they seem to have turned up the bass...These are killer albums, but I'm happy with my original, wallet CLOSED!

[KISStian]

I was excited for this, and am holding tickets to see the tour, but once I saw that price I said "no thanks."

[Anthrax442]

Normally, I would say "cool", EXCEPT, Testament has literally spent the last year hawking these two records ever since they got whatever rights issues they had with them sorted out.

And now, after you've done special re-releases of those two albums for a year (in all formats), you're going to re-release them AGAIN, but this time as a remaster, to get your fans to buy them again?

Yeah, fuck that. I'm out.

[KISStian]

Normally, I would say "cool", EXCEPT, Testament has literally spent the last year hawking these two records ever since they got whatever rights issues they had with them sorted out.

And now, after you've done special re-releases of those two albums for a year (in all formats), you're going to re-release them AGAIN, but this time as a remaster, to get your fans to buy them again?

Yeah, fuck that. I'm out.

I'm with you. These are sweet, actually, but not $50 per. I had the originals for almost 40 years now, so if I thought they sounded horrible, I suppose I wouldn't have every damned note of music in my core memory. They have really been milking the back catalog. The post-Atlantic pre-reunion 90s stuff made its way to Metal Blade and they've been hawking those for a bit too.

[WCiezak]

I downloaded the audio from Youtube and played it in Foobar. DR6, so it's got the squashed dynamics of a modern master. Felt like they changed it when they didn't need to, even the way it's EQ'd. What's odd is that there are already DR8 remasters of their old stuff on services like Tidal. Not every song. It's odd, New Order has some songs at DR12 and then Disciples at DR8. I think every release on Tidal with Disciples has it at DR8. I don't know if the 24-bit versions on there are legit remasters or not. I imagine they had to at least transfer something using a modern 24-bit high-end converter. There are some other weird anomalies too. I think Stay Hungry has everything in its original dynamic range and then "I Wanna Rock" is at DR6.

[Traxan]

Waiting for a special edition of The Gathering.

[KISStian]

Waiting for a special edition of The Gathering.

This would be the year. Surprised they haven't.

[Lobo]

Remastering won't help either of these albums.

They both sound like complete dogshit.

The drums straight up sound like trash, especially the snare, same with the guitars.

It's metal, but it's way too bright sounding and harsh.

The only thing that will make these albums sound decent are a full remix, but they are old enough for the tapes to be too degraded and fragile to the point where that's probably not possible. Or, they money just isn't there to spend what's necessary to get it done right.

Practice What You Preach was the first album of theirs that actually sounded decent which is kinda weird because Alex Perialas produced The Legacy, New Order and Practice What You Preach.

[jens]

Remastering won't help either of these albums.

They both sound like complete dogshit.

Largely unrelated: but I've seen Testament a dozen times and the sound was always terrible. As if nobody in band or crew has hearing beyond 30%.

[aznsquirt]

WTF?

The New Order on vinyl didn't have the Aerosmith cover (Nobody's Fault) or an old Testament tune called Reign of Terror which was recorded at that time.

Both those songs are on the Trail By Fire single.

If you are going to do a re-release, why not put together stuff like that? Seems like the most simplest logical thing especially in the day and age when hardly anyone is buying physical product.

Yeah.

The biggest problem for me is that without a full re-mix, there's no way this is ever going to compete sonically with First Strike Still Deadly, anyway.

[Hellbound]

WTF?

The New Order on vinyl didn't have the Aerosmith cover (Nobody's Fault) or an old Testament tune called Reign of Terror which was recorded at that time.

Both those songs are on the Trail By Fire single.

If you are going to do a re-release, why not put together stuff like that? Seems like the most simplest logical thing especially in the day and age when hardly anyone is buying physical product.

Yeah.

The biggest problem for me is that without a full re-mix, there's no way this is ever going to compete sonically with First Strike Still Deadly, anyway.

I like the way they sound quite bit but I do agree that a remix would have been far more appealing. It feels like 90% of people think a remaster is a remix and a remix is when you go all Mortal Kombat techno soundtrack on it.