In a recent interview with This Day in Metal, guitarist Alex Skolnick reflected on his departure from thrash metal giants Testament in 1992. His decision to leave was rooted in his desire to explore musical styles outside the narrow confines of the metal scene at the time.
Skolnick shared how the metal community back then was highly restrictive, saying, "The metal scene – it was very insular… And there were not a lot of references outside of metal. It's a little different now. I know plenty of people in metal bands, and I can bring up songs by artists that have nothing to do with that."
He noted that showing interest in anything beyond metal could result in being ostracized, a far cry from today's more open-minded approach. "I can talk about Zappa. I can talk about Motown. I can talk about the classic Blue Note period of jazz records. But at that time, you were kind of on the verge of being excommunicated if you so much had any interest outside the metal. It was very strange. I mean, it was also kind of a ‘youth thing' as well. And people outgrow that." he recalled.
Reflecting on his decision to leave, Skolnick remarked that his need for creative freedom was a driving factor. "I think I probably would have left anyway, because I realized I just I needed space to develop as a musician," he said. He acknowledged that the tensions within the band at the time also played a role, making the split inevitable. However, when he returned in 2005, the dynamic had shifted. "The older version of Testament, it's almost like a different band.I don't think these guys today could deal with the guys that they were back then. And I'm sure I wasn't that easy to deal with, either, in different ways." Skolnick observed, pointing out how both he and the band members had matured since those early years.
Skolnick also emphasized that when he rejoined Testament, he made it clear that his musical journey would continue outside the metal realm: "I would say that when I came back, it was very clear that I would be able to do it and keep my instrumental side. And I made that very clear, I'm going to do other projects. I'm going to continue doing instrumental music. I want to continue improving, working with artists that might be completely removed from the metal scene. And it's fine. I think it became more acceptable to do that."
