Page 66 - Metal Hammer Issue 334 - UK (May 2020)

TESTAMENT

e’ve been to a lot of places Language barrier? Pfft! Chuck
over 35 years. But now it’s Billy throws the international
sign of metal camaraderie
all about the experience,”
says Chuck Billy. The iconic
Testament frontman is
having the time of his life,
as Metal Hammer catches up with him
backstage at Silence Festival in
Kathmandu, Nepal. We have been
here before, of course, courtesy of local
metal heroes Underside and their
frankly heroic efforts to promote their
homegrown scene. For Chuck and his
Bay Area comrades, the chance to
headline this one-day festival was
too tempting to resist. As he tells us,
sporting a huge grin that is only partly
caused by the reportedly colossal
quantities of local weed and hash that
he’s been hoovering down since his
arrival, Testament have loved every
second of their Nepali trip so far.
“Oh man, it’s been amazing.
We’ve been to temples all over. We’ve
experienced all the local cuisines,
with these huge silver plates, eating
with our hands,” he enthuses, miming
yesterday’s dinner. “We also had
a plan to take a helicopter up to Mount
Everest but the weather was fucked,
so that was shut down. But I know the
guys went to another temple and rode
a cable car up in the hills. We’ve just
been catching the culture. It’s a trip,
man. We keep saying that. It’s just
a trip that we’re here.”
Having travelled so much over the
last three-and-a-half decades,
Testament have had a few experiences
that might be considered comparable
to their debut in Kathmandu. Chuck
speaks of earlier shows in both India
and Indonesia, and he sounds genuinely and then clicks into serious, focused neither set up for such things in terms
admiring of the professionalism and mode. “The thing is, when we got the of infrastructure nor particularly
resourcefulness that metal bands in offer to play at Silence, I thought, enthusiastic about the whole idea on
Asia have shown him. But something ‘Right, it’s going to be a cultural a societal level. As the event’s prime
about Kathmandu really seems to have experience first and foremost.’ But movers, Underside guitarist Bikrant
struck a chord; as he soberly recounts then on top of that, we get to play our Shrestha and manager/festival director
his band’s first taste of being driven songs for a bunch of people who really Flower are well versed in dealing with
around in the Nepali capital and don’t get a chance to see much of us or the authorities and having to turn
witnessing the ongoing impact of the any American bands, so that made it themselves inside out in order to obtain
earthquake that decimated the city in even more appealing.” the necessary permits. They were also
2015, he looks genuinely moved. involved in relief efforts, after the
“Oh man, you can see it everywhere,” “WE WERE DRIVING devastating earthquake that struck
he grimaces. “As we came in, we could Kathmandu in 2015 and destroyed
see there was a lot of construction and AROUND AND many people’s homes. Through Metal
rubble. Once we hit the ground and For Nepal, a series of gigs across 12
started driving around, you could really THERE WAS A 4.8 countries, they raised funds to build
see it in the buildings. Everything’s houses in the stricken Gorkha district.
chance really. It’s pretty intense to see.” EARTHQUAKE” It’s a world away from the relentless
stone and brick, so it didn’t have a great
commercialism of the American and
Chuck’s grin swiftly returns. “There CHUCK BILLY European music industries, and Chuck
was an earthquake here the other day, seems enamoured with the punk rock
too. It was a 4.8! We were driving The singer goes on to note that spirit that seems to drive it all.
around at the time so we weren’t sure Testament were also hugely impressed “This is such a small festival, man.
if it was an earthquake or just the guy’s by the way the Silence Festival They told me that it almost didn’t
driving! Ha ha ha!” organisers go out about their business. happen, but once we signed on,
He takes a steady but hefty drag It’s no mean feat, pulling off a metal everything started working and people
from his own branded THC vaporiser festival in the middle of a city that is started coming in from different areas.

66 METALHAMMER.COM