TESTAMENT's ERIC PETERSON Says Bassist GREG CHRISTIAN Was 'Let Go' Because He Was 'Very Unhappy' On Tour

Guitarist Eric Peterson of San Francisco Bay Area metallers TESTAMENT was interviewed by Rock Hard magazine at this year's Rock Hard Festival on June 8 at Amphitheater Gelsenkirchen in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. You can now watch the chat below.

On when fans can expect to see TESTAMENT's follow-up to 2012's "Dark Roots Of Earth":

Eric: "I think it'll probably be out in 2015 — just for the fact of setting the record up and getting it all right. I mean, 2015 is right around the corner. So by the time we get in the studio, it'll be later in the year, mixing it, getting it right. So I would say early 2015 is what I'm shooting for. We'll see what happens."

On the latest departure of TESTAMENT's original bassist, Greg Christian, earlier in the year:

Eric: "Well, you know, I'll just say this… Greg, basically, I think, was basically struggling in his mind with what he was doing. And he just seemed very unhappy on tour, and he has a lot of different reasons; he can only describe that. But he just seemed very unhappy, and we just let him go. Like, 'OK, you're unhappy. Then go.' 'Cause it was a lot of tours where he was unhappy. That's all I can really say about that. Steve DiGiorgio came onboard for the Soundwave tour we did in Australia. Steve DiGiorgio is great. We hadn't played with him for awhile, but it's awesome."

In a recent interview with 100PercentRock.com, TESTAMENT singer Chuck Billy stated about Christian's latest departure from the band: "Well, I think Greg, he informed us that he wasn't going to be participating on the new record release and that was his last tour with us. We knew we had Australia coming up, so, of course, Steve DiGiorgio was probably one of the first ones to come to mind. He did 'The Gathering' record with us and we enjoyed that whole cycle of touring, so he was definitely, probably, our first choice. We didn't want to go through auditions and do all that. We just knew that he was here, and he could do it, and it was killer."

Asked if there was a particular reason that Greg just had enough of it, Billy replied: "Well, I think that the last tour he just wasn't getting along, and he just decided that that was going to be the last tour with us, so we just kind of said, 'Well, okay. I guess we'll have to maybe look for what's coming up in the future.' You know — there's nothing we can do."

Christian was forced to leave the band's North American tour with LAMB OF GOD and KILLSWITCH ENGAGE in November 2013 for "personal reasons." Filling in for him was EXODUS bassist Jack Gibson.

"Dark Roots Of Thrash", a DVD/2CD release documenting TESTAMENT's sold-out headlining performance at the Paramount in Huntington, New York in February 2013, was made available on October 18, 2013 (Europe) and October 29, 2013 (North America) via Nuclear Blast Records. "Dark Roots Of Thrash" was produced by Get Hammered Productions, directed by Tommy Jones (DEATH ANGEL, KATAKLYSM, SOILWORK) and mixed by Juan Urteaga (VILE, EXODUS, SADUS, MACHINE HEAD).