Labeled as one of the "big six" of the 1980s Bay Area thrash metal scene (along with Exodus, Death Angel, Lååz Rockit, Forbidden and Vio-lence), Testament is often credited as one of the most popular and influential bands of the thrash metal scene, as well as one of the leaders of the second wave of the genre in the late 1980s. They have also been referred to as one of the "big eight" of thrash metal, along with Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Anthrax, Exodus, Overkill and Death Angel. The band has sold over 1.4 million albums in the United States since the beginning of the SoundScan era and over 14 million copies worldwide. To date, Testament has released thirteen studio albums (one of which is a collection of re-recorded songs), four live albums, five compilation albums, twelve singles and three DVDs.
After signing to Atlantic Records in 1986, and changing its name from Legacy to Testament, the band released their debut album The Legacy in 1987, followed a year later by The New Order (1988); both albums were acclaimed by critics and the press, including heavy metal-related publications. The band achieved mainstream popularity with its third album Practice What You Preach (1989), which was Testament's first album to climb up the Top 100 on the Billboard 200 chart. A string of more successful albums were released during the early-to-mid-1990s, including Souls of Black (1990), The Ritual (1992) and Low (1994), with the first two also entering the Top 100 on the Billboard 200 chart. After Atlantic dropped the band in 1995, Testament (who had at this point had begun to experiment with a death metal-influenced sound) continued to record and perform until their temporary hiatus in 2001, when Billy was diagnosed with cancer. By 2005, his cancer was in remission and Testament had resumed activity, which saw a brief reunion of The Legacy lineup, resulting in the live album Live in London. Since then, Testament has experienced a resurgence of popularity, with four of their studio albums—The Formation of Damnation (2008), Dark Roots of Earth (2012), Brotherhood of the Snake (2016) and Titans of Creation (2020)—all entering the Top 100 on the Billboard 200, and they have continued to tour consistently.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testament_(band)
Studio albums
The Legacy (1987)
The New Order (1988)
Practice What You Preach (1989)
Souls of Black (1990)
The Ritual (1992)
Low (1994)
Demonic (1997)
The Gathering (1999)
First Strike Still Deadly (2001)
The Formation of Damnation (2008)
Dark Roots of Earth (2012)
Brotherhood of the Snake (2016)
Titans of Creation (2020)
The Haunting
Testament Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Shrieks of terror through the night
Souls of old band to hold
The meeting for the haunting night
[Chorus]
Headless ghosts fill the halls
Shadow plays of grief and pain
Tenants of the castle slain
Black cats will appear
As the witching hour nears
Lost souls will all be told
For a haunting we will go
See their dreams come to life
Under pressure holding tight
Feel the cold grabbing hold
To feed you to the haunting night
Evil witch black as pitch
Starts a fire with a flinch
Burning fire rising higher
Making music like a choir
Stay away from the shining light
Can't seem to find the answer there
Bring back the terror in the night
That we all share tonight
Hear the screams,screams of fright
Shrieks of terror through the night
Souls of old band to hold
The meeting for the haunting night
[Chorus]
The lyrics of Testament’s song “The Haunting” paint a spooky and terrifying picture. The haunting referred to in the title is described as a meeting of souls of old who come together on a haunted night. The chilling screams, shrieks of terror, and shadow plays of grief and pain add to the eerie atmosphere. The song’s chorus mentions the headless ghosts filling the halls and phantom speaking his final note, heightening the sense of foreboding.
The song takes on a more sinister appearance with the appearance of an evil witch, who starts a fire and makes music like a choir. The lyrics warn the listener to stay away from the shining light, as it will not provide any answers, and bring back the terror in the night that we all share tonight.
Overall, the lyrics of “The Haunting” are meant to evoke feelings of fear and dread in the listener. Testament paints a scary picture of souls coming together to haunt the living and recreate a terror from the past.
Line by Line Meaning
Hear the screams,screams of fright
The sound of screams of fear can be heard
Shrieks of terror through the night
The night is filled with sounds of terrifying screams
Souls of old band to hold
Old souls gather to join forces
The meeting for the haunting night
Their meeting is for the purpose of haunting tonight
[Chorus]
Repeating the haunting and frightful theme
Headless ghosts fill the halls
The halls are occupied by ghosts without heads
Shadow plays of grief and pain
The shadows reflect scenes of sorrow and agony
Phantom speaks his final note
A ghostly apparition delivers its last message
Tenants of the castle slain
The people residing in the castle have been killed
Black cats will appear
There will be sightings of black cats
As the witching hour nears
The hour of witches is approaching
Lost souls will all be told
All the souls who are lost will be informed
For a haunting we will go
We will go haunting together
See their dreams come to life
Their dreams become reality
Under pressure holding tight
They are holding together under stress
Feel the cold grabbing hold
They feel the cold taking control
To feed you to the haunting night
To give you over to the haunting atmosphere
Evil witch black as pitch
A wicked witch who is as black as pitch
Starts a fire with a flinch
She initiates a fire with a sudden movement
Burning fire rising higher
The fire grows bigger as it burns
Making music like a choir
The fire creates a melody like a chorus
Stay away from the shining light
Avoid the bright light as it may not help
Can't seem to find the answer there
The answer isn't found in the light
Bring back the terror in the night
They want the terror to return to the night
That we all share tonight
We all experience the horror together tonight
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ALEXANDER NATHAN SKOLNICK, ERIC STANLEY PETERSON, STEVEN SOUZA
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Sebastian Aranis
Hear the screams, screams of fright
Shrieks of terror through the night
Souls of old band to hold
The meeting for the haunting night
Headless ghosts fill the halls
Shadow plays of grief and pain
Phantom speaks his final note
Tenants of the castle slain
Black cats will appear
As the witching hour nears
Lost souls will all be told
For a haunting we will go
See their dreams come to life
Under pressure holding tight
Feel the cold grabbing hold
To feed you to the haunting night
Evil witch black as pitch
Starts a fire with a flinch
Burning fire rising higher
Making music like a choir
Stay away from the shining light
Can't seem to find the answer there
Bring back the terror in the night
That we all share tonight
Hear the screams, screams of fright
Shrieks of terror through the night
Souls of old band to hold
The meeting for the haunting night
Headless ghosts fill the halls
Shadow plays of grief and pain
Phantom speaks his final note
Tenants of the castle slain
Black cats will appear
As the witching hour nears
Lost souls will all be told
For a haunting we will go
Fish Renfroe Boyd
I love how in the thrash world you can have a song like this with superior technical guitar riffs, or you can have something much simpler like For Whom The Bell Tolls which is easier to play but will always sound big and powerful and both these songs are just as cool to me. Thrash is a flexible world of talents and speeds.
Ethan Eames
Harvester of sorrow!
Joey Hammer
Holy wars
Walamonga1313
@Joey Hammer That one has both 😎
Taylor Goetz
You said alot but all I heard was all tharsh band good bands
empire of the sun°
Hey Guys!
Why you not listen Damage Inc. from Metallica again?🙂
F.D. Geiger
They just freaking killed it....2020 and this album never gets old, ever.
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Bob E. Fan
I remember barely having hair on my balls, and listening to testament. Even after 20+ years, they still kick ass.
Josh Mosh
and now you search for bald pune to haunt
Sam King
2:22 the solo is just Awesome !!!