Press
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“Across four sprawling tracks and nearly 39 minutes, the group expands the boundaries of improvised music without losing the emotion that anchors truly great songwriting. It’s an ambitious first statement, rooted in bassist and songwriter Mark McQuillan’s lyrical instincts and built in chemistry of a band that have hit on all cylinders.”
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"It's a beautiful piece of work. One cannot begin the conclusion, the final considerations of a work like this, in any other way. Its beauty, eccentric yet imbued with a provocatively classicist charm, shows his aptitude and expertise in transforming sounds into textures, and textures into feelings. Never Run Dry is pure jazz, complete with Renaissance-style lyrical waltzes. "
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"Testaments crafts a world in which emotions flow and erode and return like water, reshaping the inner landscape with each pass"
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"Testaments come in like a band who’ve decided London’s endless conveyor belt of polite acoustic noodling just isn’t unhinged enough, and thank Christ for that. Never Run Dry isn’t just a debut EP, it’s a bit of a dare — a four-track statement that effectively says “Here, have some beauty, have some chaos, deal with it.” And for the most part, it bloody works. You can hear the nerves, the ambition, the stubborn belief that they’re building something future-facing, and while it’s not flawless, the flaws are part of the charm. They’re reaching, straining, stretching the seams, and that’s far more exciting than another spotless music-school project designed to impress someone’s tutor."
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"Some debut EPs introduce a band, others reveal them. Never Run Dry goes further: it presents Testaments as a fully formed group, aware of its own breath, its flaws, and its vertigo. A London quintet that plays jazz like one writes a novel—with knots, shadows, an intimate dramaturgy that rivals the most adventurous music. Here, improvisation isn't a gratuitous gesture: it's an act of faith, a way of inhabiting time to the point of making it tremble. And the four tracks on this EP are like chapters that constantly contradict, respond to, and transcend one another."
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"What I particularly love about Testaments is they’re not afraid to challenge the boundaries of musical genres. I must admit, I have never heard music like theirs before, yet somehow it feels familiar. They beautifully take the forms and shapes of traditional jazz and decorate it with their own experimental flare. Instead of finding myself a little lost and confused, I was sucked into a new sound-scape that I wish I’d heard sooner."
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“Rebecka Edlund’s vocals? Pure magic. There’s this softness, this tenderness, that wraps around you. No drama, no over-the-top theatrics—just raw, beautiful delivery. And just when you think you’ve got a handle on what Make Me Eternal is all about, the last few minutes hit. The real art of improvisation takes over—raw, unfiltered, and absolutely mind-blowing. They’re young, but they play like they’ve been doing this for decades.”
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“This piece is filled with so much emotion and undoubtedly theatrical. It's jazzy, but also gives the essence of something you'd hear on Broadway. One thing about this sound that is alluring is its "let-you-in" approach. You feel like you're in the room listening to Testaments in the moment of its inception.”
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"Testaments deserve more than applause; they deserve a welcome that echoes, like their music, long after the last note fades. With “Never Run Dry,” they have not only shaped the future of jazz, they have given it a voice, a heart, and a pulse."
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"This album is a true musical experience, full of authenticity, creativity, excellent composition, and vibrant energy. It's a work that captivated and excited us; we loved every detail."
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"I fell in love within seconds with a voice that fills the room with a certain lightness and sweetness, embodying something delicate and melodic."
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"Testaments blend masterful improvisation, poetic lyricism, and dramatic composition—it’s controlled chaos and ethereal beauty rolled into one."