Testament isn't built to slow down. Less than five months after dropping Para Bellum, frontman Chuck Billy has confirmed the band's next album is already taking shape — with founding guitarist Eric Peterson and new drummer Chris Dovas well ahead of schedule.
"Chris and Eric are actually working on the next record already," Billy told Minneapolis radio station 93X. "They've already got, like, six or eight tunes almost ready to go for the next record. So we're hoping maybe get out in '27 to pop into the studio and make another record."
Six to eight tracks with a 2027 target window. For a band that hit a critical high point with Para Bellum last fall, that momentum is the point.
The New Lineup Is Already Running Hot
The addition of Chris Dovas on drums was one of the most consequential lineup moves in Testament's recent history. Dovas, who made his recorded debut on Para Bellum, has clearly locked in fast. The chemistry between him and Peterson — two musicians with a shared hunger for technical precision — is already producing material.
Billy's framing makes clear this isn't just preliminary noodling. Six to eight tracks "almost ready to go" suggests the core rhythmic and guitar architectures are in place. What's left is the final refinement, then Billy and the rest of the band layering vocals, leads, and arrangements.
The 2027 studio window gives them room to develop that material properly, but it's not a distant horizon — it's the next scheduled stop.
Billy Has No Exit Strategy
What makes this news hit differently is the context around it. Just days ago, Billy spoke candidly about his long-term view on retirement and the band's future, with a tone that left the question open. This interview closes it.
When the 93X hosts noted that other bands take four or five years between albums, Billy had a blunt response: "Yeah, but when you're 63 years old, five years, man, that's a fucking long time. You know what I'm saying?"
He wasn't joking. Billy turns 64 this year. The urgency is real, not performative. He has the voice and the band is functioning at a high level right now — and he knows that windows like this don't stay open forever.
"I don't have no plans on retiring ever in the future, but I think the time is now," he said. "Hey, we've got a good strong band. Everybody's into writing. Man, we get along well. Things are going well. Let's just keep going, man, keep writing. That's the end of it."
Even in a scenario where touring becomes physically difficult down the road, Billy is clear about where his identity lives: "I think we'll always be songwriters and make records, 'cause we enjoy that."
Para Bellum Set the Bar
Any new Testament record will be judged against Para Bellum, which dropped in October 2025 via Nuclear Blast and delivered on every front the band's audience needed. Produced by Juan Urteaga with mixing handled by Jens Bogren — a first for Testament — the record brought a sharper, more layered sound than anything they'd released in years. Cover art by Eliran Kantor, as is tradition.
It was the kind of album that renewed casual listeners and rewarded the long-term faithful in equal measure. Follow-up expectations will be calibrated accordingly.
They're on the Road Right Now
Testament is currently mid-run on their tour with Overkill and Destruction, a bill that speaks to where the band sits in the thrash landscape — headlining, comfortable, moving crowds. The run kicked off March 14 in Portland and wraps April 10 in Berkeley.
Dates still remaining:
- 3/16 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Rockwell at The Complex
- 3/18 – Denver, CO @ Summit Music Hall
- 3/20 – Milwaukee, WI @ The Rave
- 3/21 – Minneapolis, MN @ The Fillmore
- 3/22 – Chicago, IL @ Ramova Theatre
- 3/24 – Detroit, MI @ St Andrews Hall
- 3/25 – Cleveland, OH @ Agora Ballroom
- 3/27 – Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
- 3/28 – Sayreville, NJ @ Starland Ballroom
- 3/29 – Reading, PA @ Club Reverb
- 3/31 – Atlanta, GA @ Buckhead Theatre
- 4/1 – St. Petersburg, FL @ Jannus Live
- 4/3 – Houston, TX @ House of Blues
- 4/4 – Dallas, TX @ The Bomb Factory
- 4/5 – San Antonio, TX @ Aztec Theatre
- 4/8 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Van Buren
- 4/9 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco
- 4/10 – Berkeley, CA @ The UC Theatre (no Overkill)
This tour is also a direct opportunity to catch the Para Bellum material live before the band pivots into building what comes next. That window matters.
What Comes Next
Testament in 2026 is a band that looks nothing like a band coasting. The Practice What You Preach remaster announcement showed the label still investing in their catalog. The current tour keeps their live profile elevated. And now, with six to eight tracks already built, the machine is running for the follow-up.
If 2027 holds, Testament will have delivered two albums in under two years. For a band operating at this level, that's not reckless — it's exactly the pace Billy wants to keep.
