TESTAMENT- Slayer’s Farewell Tour
From the Slayer Farewell Tour 2018
Hollywood Casino Ampitheatre
Tinley Park IL
Fri 5/25/18

Testament- from Slayer’s Farewell Tour- one of the original main eight thrash metal bands, opening for Slayer on their “Farewell Tour” back in 2018.
The Final World Tour (also referred as The Farewell Tour) was the final concert tour by the supreme thrash metal band Slayer, which began on May 10, 2018, and ended on November 30, 2019.
The tour, consisting of 147 shows worldwide, served as a conclusion of the band’s three- and- a- half- decade long career.
When the first leg was announced back in January of 2018, with of course a stop in the Chicago suburbs at the Hollywood Casino Ampitheatre in Tinley Park, Slayer wanted to include a heavy hitting lineup of supporting acts to make this Farewell Tour so memorable- with openers Testament, into Behemoth, then followed by Anthrax, then Lamb of God, and the headliner Slayer.
Testament have consistently shown prowess and might in their beloved genre of thrash metal: like Slayer, they’re committed to this genre of metal, truly never wavering far off the path that this type of music upholds.
Testament is credited often 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 dating back to the late 1980’s.
They are often included in the brethren Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Exodus, Overkill, Death Angel, and of course- Slayer.
What makes Testament such a standout after all these years is the duo of mighty guitarists- original member Eric Peterson and of course Alex Skolnick.
When it comes to guitar duos in metal, it’s hard to beat the pairing of these two- knowing after all these years their comfort zones and shared kizmet, teaming up to consistently deliver killer riffs onstage and on record.
Testament isn’t for the faint hearted, especially within the inner workings of the band since way back in the mid eighties, having been through an abundance of turmoil and disruption, including a dizzying number of lineup changes, along with lead singer Chuck Billy’s bout with cancer back in 2001.
And yet, going into Slayer’s Farewell Tour back in 2018, here they are, opening the show with a blistering set and sounding better than ever.
There dark days definitely behind them, and out from the ashes to the glorious other side of refreshment, with a renewed enthusiasm and willingness to continue to create, the fans that arrived early to catch them were in for a treat.
Peterson’s riffage, along with Skolnick’s- is relentless throughout, and inspired.
Gene Hoglan’s drumming is everything you’d expect from the this tried and true skinsman, and Billy’s vocals have maintained his classic and refreshing quality of growl and grit.
Bassist Steve DiGiorgio has his moments of keeping the bottom relentlessly heavy and tight and intact.
So when it’s crunch time with Testament performing live, and you’re limited to roughly a little over a half an hour for your set- you might as well go full tilt, and unleash the hounds from the first song to the last.
The setlist for Testament was short and concise: Opening with “Brotherhood of the Snake”, into “Rise Up”, into “Practice What You Preach”, into “The Pale King”, then “Into the Pit”, into “The New Order”, and closing with “Disciples of the Watch”.
So in conclusion, Testament still holds strong, still trailblazes when it comes to performing live, and still progresses with creating strong material.
And here they still are after all these years- louder and mightier than ever.
So with this gigantic lineup from Slayer’s Farewell Tour, I’ve decided to focus on the bands individually, to give them their due.
The next post will focus on Behemoth, then Anthrax, into Lamb of God, followed with of course- Slayer.
Cheers- Bobby Talamine – Music Photographer