Testament – Para Bellum

Testament – Para Bellum
Release Date: 10th October 2025
Label: Nuclear Blast
Order/Stream
Genre: Thrash Metal, Death Metal, Black Metal.
FFO: Kreator, Death, Morbid Angel, Cradle of Filth, Sodom, Slayer, Obituary, Overkill, Exodus, Bloodbath.
Review By: Malte Brigge

There is no dull moment in Testament’s discography. They’ve released some of the most important albums in metal and have remained shockingly good in their later years, showing barely a hint of twilight. Dark Roots of the Earth ranks up there with the best, while Brotherhood of the Snake and Titans of Creation reveal a rare aging band still discovering their potential. Of all the giants from their era, Testament seems the most interested in the many paths metal has taken since the 1980s. After their label convinced them to make their own version of Metallica’s black album (The Ritual, not bad at all but cleaner than anything before or since), they stuck their middle fingers up in the air and released Low, my personal favorite, mixing full-on death metal (“Dog-Faced Gods”) with classic Testament textures. This set them down the path that would forever dominate their destiny, and we’ve all reaped the rewards. With Chuck Billy’s inimitable voice and Eric Peterson’s love of extreme metal electrifying the band to turn head-spinning thrash into bone-crushing death, what could they possibly do on Para Bellum that they haven’t done before? 

For the Love of Pain opens the album with a furious blast of thrash heavily lathered with scorching black metal, Peterson’s dry, demonic rasp (which you might know from his symphonic black metal side project, Dragonlord) whiplashing with Chuck’s death roar. The song kicks every ass and doesn’t care about your feelings. It makes me excited to press play on Para Bellum often and repeatedly. Infanticide A.I. and Shadow People move through death metal divagations back onto solid thrash ground, reminding you that Testament can do whatever they want without cheapening their sound. Songs like Witch Hunt, Room 117 and the eponymous closer deftly blend elements of death, thrash and black metal while holding on to what makes Testament so recognizable and recognizably good. The title track has a sharp, staccato build while Chuck’s permanently singed voice reaches into new, darker realms. It’s an absolute neck-snapper with slippery, twining guitar work, Skolnick’s jazz-touched solos, and it takes you home with a poignant finger-picking melody. You can’t ask for better bookends to an album than what they’ve done here.

It’s not all highs, though. Testament has written some of the greatest metal ballads of all time, infusing them with irony (“The Ballad”), painful melancholy (“The Legacy”) or bittersweet regret (“Return to Serenity”). Meant to Be, Para Bellum’s ballad, is something I wanted to skip after one listen. The acoustic guitar work is lovely, because Testament, but Chuck’s voice has maybe been through the ringer a little too much for the uninspired, well-trod melody and lugubrious tone. I might not be as bothered if the lyrics weren’t so trite. They settled for the easiest possible clichés, lacking the sincerity that makes the aforementioned songs profound. By the time Meant to Be gets electric, I’m bored, and by the time Testament finally shows up (six minutes in!), I’m checked out. It’s a long stumble that’s inexplicably followed by High Noon, a goofy little gunslinger ditty with a neat rolling barrage of guitars and a touch of Morbid Angel but no real hold.

These aren’t bad songs, though, and I appreciate the live orchestration on Meant to Be (by cellist Dave Eggar, and it’s worth noting that an important statement of this album emphasizes the human element in all aspects of the creative process, from the amazing cover by Eliran Kantor to the full-throttle mixing by Jens Bogren). Even a weak Testament song is good enough and nothing here is a deal-breaker. Lesser tracks bring both diversity and comfort, kicking into mid-tempo Motörhead grooves (Nature of the Beast) or rewrapping “Low” and calling it Havana Syndrome. Guitar work is crunchy and there’s that ever-steady sense of a good melody that infuses all aspects of their writing. Steve DiGiorgio’s bass is beautifully present throughout the album, not only because the mix is clear but because he understands how to work around and through, rather than behind, Peterson’s riffs and fill in space with an almost orchestral awareness. But here’s Para Bellum’s secret: Chris Dovas, the new drummer, is fucking wild. Testament always had great drummers, but you can hear how much he energizes the band. Listening to Dovas’ work on Para Bellum makes Titans of Creation sound outright tired, which isn’t something anyone ever accused it of before. The drummer is in the driver’s seat and these roads are extremely dangerous. 

Hold on for dear life and have a great time. Para Bellum is fifty-two minutes of Testament proving they will always be at the top of their, and everyone else’s, game. The twisted marriage of forms keeps the album fresh and lively, and I hope they continue immolating their songs with black and death infusions, because it’s heavy, frenetic, forceful and just an absolute thrill to listen to.

(3.5 / 5)