From MA:
"Although "Piece of Time" was recorded and completed in 1988, it faced multiple delays until its release in 1990, due to label politics. The album was planned for release in 1989, but the label that Atheist was initially signed to at the time (Mean Machine Records) went bankrupt, so the band had to search for another label, until Active Records signed them and released "Piece of Time" in early 1990. However, it took six months for the album to be released in the United States, when Metal Blade Records finally arranged a licensing deal with Active and released it in the United States in November 1990, roughly two years after the album's completion.
Test-pressing copies were pressed in July 1989."