Album
Para Bellum
Para Bellum is the fourteenth studio album by American thrash metal band Testament, released on 10 October 2025 through Nuclear Blast. It follows Titans of Creation from 2020 and is the first Testament record to feature drummer Chris Dovas. The title is Latin for "prepare for war", taken from the adage Si vis pacem, para bellum: "If you want peace, prepare for war."
Musically, it blends thrash with death metal and black metal, so the band's long-standing core sound gets some darker, harsher edges. One track, "Meant to Be", goes somewhere different again, bringing in orchestral and progressive touches. Loudwire named it its metal album of the year, which makes it a good place to catch up with a band that is still pushing its sound after so many records.
Para Bellum: tracklist, credits and charts
10 tracks · 50:28Tracklist
- 1For the Love of PainEric Peterson and Chris Dovas5:35
- 2Infanticide A.I.Peterson, Billy, James3:28
- 3Shadow PeoplePeterson, Billy, James5:45
- 4Meant to BePeterson, Skolnick, Billy, James7:33
- 5High NoonPeterson, Billy, James3:53
- 6Witch HuntPeterson, Billy, Souza4:16
- 7Nature of the BeastPeterson, Billy, James4:28
- 8Room 117Peterson, Billy, James4:18
- 9Havana SyndromePeterson, Billy, James4:40
- 10Para BellumPeterson, Billy, Skolnick6:31
- Produced by
- Chuck Billy, Eric Peterson, Juan Urteaga
- Recorded at
- Trident Studios, Dragon Lair, Skol Productions, Classic Recording Bristol
- Recorded
- May–December 2024
- Mixed by
- Jens Bogren
- Mixed at
- Fascination Street Studios, Studio 1
- Mastered by
- Tony Lindgren
- Label
- Nuclear Blast
- Length
- 50:28
Line-up
- Dave Eggar · cello, viola, violin · guest
- Xavi Morató · violin · guest
- Steve DiGiorgio · bass guitar
- Chris Dovas · drums (drum set)
- Eric Peterson · guitar
- Alex Skolnick · guitar
- Chuck Billy · vocals
Singles
- “Infanticide A.I.” · 21 August 2025
- “Shadow People” · 12 September 2025
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart · 2025 | 12 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2025 | 1 |
| German Rock & Metal Albums (Offizielle Top 100) · 2025 | 2 |
| Swedish Hard Rock Albums (Sverigetopplistan) · 2025 | 2 |
| Norwegian Physical Albums (IFPI Norge) · 2025 | 3 |
| French Rock & Metal Albums (SNEP) · 2025 | 4 |
| UK Independent Albums · 2025 | 4 |
| Japanese Rock Albums (Oricon) · 2025 | 6 |
| Swiss Albums · 2025 | 7 |
| Austrian Albums · 2025 | 8 |
All 28 charts
| Poland 2 · 2025 | 8 |
| US Top Album Sales (Billboard) · 2025 | 9 |
| German Albums · 2025 | 10 |
| Scottish Albums · 2025 | 11 |
| US Top Hard Rock Albums (Billboard) · 2025 | 15 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2025 | 26 |
| Japanese Top Albums Sales (Billboard Japan) · 2025 | 26 |
| Finnish Albums · 2025 | 27 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 2025 | 29 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2025 | 32 |
| US Independent Albums (Billboard) · 2025 | 37 |
| Dutch Albums · 2025 | 39 |
| Japanese Download Albums (Billboard Japan) · 2025 | 44 |
| Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE) · 2025 | 49 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) · 2025 | 56 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2025 | 86 |
| Italian Albums (FIMI) · 2025 | 92 |
| French Albums · 2025 | 97 |
From MusicBrainz and Wikipedia. Only what the sources record is shown.
46.5
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
639
ListenBrainz listeners
83k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
3.1k
Deezer fans (all editions)
Also released on 10 October
Every year →
More from Testament
Full discography →
The Legacy
1987
Trial by Fire
1988
The New Order
1988
Practice What You Preach
1989
Souls of Black
1990
The Ritual
1992
Return to the Apocalyptic City
1993
Low
1994
Live at the Fillmore
1995
The Best of Testament
1996
Demonic
1997
Signs of Chaos: The Best of Testament
1997
The Gathering
1999
The Very Best of Testament
2001
First Strike Still Deadly
2001
Days of Darkness
2004
Live in London
2005
The Spitfire Collection
2007
The Formation of Damnation
2008
Live at Eindhoven ’87
2009
Dark Roots of Earth
2012
Dark Roots of Thrash
2013
Brotherhood of the Snake
2016
Titans of Creation
2020
The best of 2025
All of 2025 →
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Nine Inch Nails · 2025
Anthems
Queen · 2025
Hail to the Thief: Live Recordings 2003–2009
Radiohead · 2025
Pop
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Jeff Buckley: It’s Never Over
Jeff Buckley · 2025
private music
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Riffs
Queen · 2025
One More Time
Aerosmith · 2025
Ballads
Queen · 2025
The Last of Us
Pearl Jam · 2025
Live EP
Led Zeppelin · 2025
I Beat Loneliness
Bush · 2025
More on Nuclear Blast
The label →
Repentless
Slayer · 2015
Worship Music
Anthrax · 2011
Titans of Creation
Testament · 2020
Brotherhood of the Snake
Testament · 2016
Dark Roots of Earth
Testament · 2012
Machine Messiah
Sepultura · 2017
Kairos
Sepultura · 2011
Blood In Blood Out
Exodus · 2014
Torn Arteries
Carcass · 2021
The Mediator Between Head and Hands Must Be the Heart
Sepultura · 2013
Exhibit B: The Human Condition
Exodus · 2010
Despicable
Carcass · 2020
How we know the release date wikipedia + musicbrainz + wikidata
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 10 October 2025 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 10 October 2025 | |
| Wikidata | 10 October 2025 | |
| Deezer | 10 October 2025 | |
| US release | 10 October 2025 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 10 October 2025 | earliest UK or European date |
8 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 October 2025 | XW | Nuclear Blast | 4065629752262 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | XE | Nuclear Blast Records | 4065629752224 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | US | Nuclear Blast | 4065629752217 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | JP | Chaos Reigns | 4571614702681 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | XW | Nuclear Blast Records | 4065629752279 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | JP | Chaos Reigns | 4571614702667 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | JP | Chaos Reigns | 4571614702674 | original |
| 10 October 2025 | XE | Nuclear Blast Records | 4065629752224 | original |
Cover art sources
deezer · upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| deezer ✓ | 1200×1200 | upscaled: major: best source 1200x1200, upscaled to 1500 (x1.25) |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |