Legendary bay area thrash metal giants, Testament, have launched the countdown for the unveiling of the cover art for their upcoming 12th album, The Brotherhood Of The Snake, which will be released on October 28th via Nuclear Blast.

See the first part of the art pictured below. To see more of the record's cover, make sure to check the band's social media pages daily, starting from today: Facebook, Twitter.

The Brotherhood Of The Snake was recorded under the watchful eyes of producer Juan Urteaga (Exodus, Machine Head), guitarist Eric Peterson and singer Chuck Billy and is currently being mixed and mastered by well-known metal producer Andy Sneap (Accept, Megadeth).

Commented Peterson in another interview: "It's very diverse, but it's very epic. There's nothing on there that breeds commercial. And I think for thirty years of recording music and trying different formulas and stuff, I think we've found a formula that is very metal. I think for the metal fan that is looking for something for the nook and crannies… not just your normal, 'Oh, it's got a thrash beat and a riff.' There's a lot going on here."

In another interview, the songwriter stated: "It's different. This one is more thrash. I mean, this has got some of the fastest stuff that we have ever played. Usually, we have one or two thrash songs, and then we have some mid-tempo, and then we have a slow, heavy one, and then up-tempo kind of stuff. Half of the new record is thrash, which we've never done before."

He continued: "It's kind of like Demonic and The Gathering, but a little bit wiser, I think. Chuck's not singing so death. I mean, he does some death stuff but he's singing more like he did on the last record and then with the craziness of The Gathering or even heavy stuff like Demonic."

Testament will support The Brotherhood Of The Snake on their European run with Amon Amarth this fall. Dates to be announced soon. The band will embark on their summer festival run next week including some chosen club shows beginning July 13th in Hungary.

Live dates:

August
4 - Rijssen, Netherlands - Lucky & Co
5 - Wacken, Germany - Wacken Open Air
18 - Dinkelsbühl, Germany - Summer Breeze
19 - Hamburg, Germany - Elb-Riot
20 - Saarbrücken, Germany - Garage
21 - Saint-Nolff, France - Motocultor Fest
27 - Istanbul, Turkey - 100% Metal Fest Headbangers

(Photo - Stephanie Cabral)