ELOY CASAGRANDE On Becoming a member of SLIPKNOT: ‘That Was The Place That I At all times Needed To Be’

In an interview for the duvet story of the January 2025 problem of Fashionable Drummer journal, SLIPKNOT‘s Eloy Casagrande was requested for his opinion of the drummer who changed him in SEPULTURA, Greyson Nekrutman, who joined the latter band at across the identical time in his life as Eloy did in 2011. The Brazilian musician responded: “Sure, and once I see him enjoying, I can keep in mind myself in the identical spot. Once I joined SEPULTURA, I used to be his age. That is fairly attention-grabbing. He is an excellent drummer. I used to observe him enjoying movies he posted on social media when he was enjoying extra jazz and drum solos. He is an excellent participant and I want him and the remainder of the band all the very best. I’ve loads of respect for him. I want I may speak to him extra sooner or later. Perhaps we may deliver all of the SEPULTURA drummers collectively.

“Greyson got here to my studio in São Paulo when he joined the band to do some rehearsals, and we had an excellent speak,” Eloy added. “He had simply two or three weeks to study all of the songs, so I gave him some recommendation like, ‘We used to play that track quicker. Watch out with this track as a result of we used to play it slower.’ I wasn’t educating him how you can play the songs as a result of he can play something he needs to play. He is an unimaginable drummer.”

Requested what it was like getting the decision from SLIPKNOT and the way he acquired the gig, Eloy stated: “Every part occurred on the finish of 2023 once I acquired a name from SLIPKNOT‘s supervisor asking me if I used to be concerned about doing an audition for SLIPKNOT. That yr, SEPULTURA determined to cease enjoying, so it was a really pure resolution for me to maintain enjoying with another person as a substitute of simply retiring. On the finish of [2023] and the start of [2024], I wasn’t supposed to speak to anybody about that. The audition was an enormous secret. No person may find out about it. SEPULTURA did not even know, it was simply one thing between me and the fellows from SLIPKNOT. It was my resolution to do the audition. I stated, ‘Okay, I am concerned about doing an audition as a result of SEPULTURA goes to cease. I’ve one and a half years left of working with them and I will be accomplished.’

“By the years, I’ve performed many instances with SLIPKNOT,” he continued. “We shared phases once I was enjoying SEPULTURA, and that was the place that I all the time wished to be. I grew up listening to their music, so I wished to have the expertise enjoying stay with SLIPKNOT with a masks on my face. In my first present with the band I used to be pondering, ‘Oh, that is actually taking place. Oh my god. I can not imagine it.’

“Going again a little bit bit, earlier than I used to be invited to do the audition, I took my drums to a studio in São Paulo and did a correct sound and video recording,” Eloy defined. “I performed six songs, and I despatched it to the fellows. I selected three songs after which they requested me to play three particular songs. They have been ‘Eyeless’, ‘Purity’ and ‘Gematria’. My flight was booked to go to the audition, so on the finish of January [of 2024], I flew to Palm Springs, California, and spent ten days with them there. The primary 5 days, the entire band was rehearsing prefer it was a stay present. Every single day, the fellows got here with a distinct setlist, and we simply performed these songs.”

Final month, Fashionable Drummer journal’s readers voted Casagrande because the No. 1 metallic drummer within the publication’s 2024 Readers’ Ballot.

After parting methods with Jay Weinberg in November 2023, SLIPKNOT teased followers with a touch a couple of new drummer 10 months in the past, posting a photograph of a single damaged drumstick on-line with the caption “Rehearsal.”

The band defined in an announcement that the cut up with Weinberg was a inventive resolution. Jay adopted up with an announcement of his personal, saying that he was “heartbroken and blindsided” by his dismissal.

Weinberg has since joined SUICIDAL TENDENCIES and INFECTIOUS GROOVES.

Casagrande abruptly give up SEPULTURA 11 months in the past, shortly earlier than he was supposed to start rehearsals for the band’s just lately launched Fortieth-anniversary farewell tour.

“February sixth, a couple of days previous to the primary rehearsal, drummer Eloy Casagrande knowledgeable the band that he was leaving SEPULTURA to pursue a profession in one other challenge,” the band stated in an announcement.

Casagrande joined SEPULTURA greater than 13 years in the past because the alternative for Jean Dolabella.

SLIPKNOT‘s newest album “The Finish, So Far”, arrived in August 2022. It marked the band’s the final full-length LP earlier than the departure of each keyboardist Craig Jones, who left the group in June 2023, and Weinberg.

SLIPKNOT just lately accomplished the North American portion of the “Right here Comes The Ache” tour. The band was celebrating the twenty fifth anniversary of its seminal debut album, “Slipknot”, which catapulted the band again in 1999.

In an interview with Tone-Speak, SLIPKNOT guitarist Jim Root spoke about how Casagrande got here to hitch SLIPKNOT and his influence on the band’s general sound. He stated: “We did not even attempt anyone else. Eloy‘s identify got here up. He contacted us, truly, about desirous to be part of it and began sending a bunch of movies in. I feel him and our bass participant [Alessandro ‘Vman’ Venturella] may’ve had a little bit little bit of a relationship earlier than. I feel they knew one another. That they had mutual buddies. And Vman‘s actually in tune with loads of actually nice, proggy, heavy musicians which might be keen about their devices. And it simply appeared like a no brainer. And he is actually respectful of the legacy of [SLIPKNOT‘s original drummer, the late] Joey [Jordison], and Joey was an enormous affect on him. And he is so humble. The dude has a lot humility. And you possibly can inform he simply lives and breathes his craft, to the purpose the place I see his ardour and it ignites my ardour for my instrument. And Brazilians, South People basically, are so keen about what they do. Our supervisor advised me, he was out to dinner with 4 or 5 promoters from South America, and so they have been all actually stoked. They’re all, like, ‘It is so good you’ve got acquired a Brazilian drummer in SLIPKNOT now. We sort of really feel like we have received the World Cup.’ It is a cool feeling. And God, he simply suits in so effectively. I do not know, man. I imply, there’s loads of issues I can say about it. I am simply glad it occurred when it did. And we’re fortunate to have him — we’re actually fortunate to have that dude.”