TRIVIUM Bassist Says Drummer PAUL WANDTKE Wasn't 'The Right Fit'

In a brand new interview with Myglobalmind conducted before the first show of TRIVIUM's European tour, bassist Paolo Gregoletto was asked why the band's last drummer, Paul Wandtke, lasted only eleven months before he was dismissed and replaced by Alex Bent. "He was really just not the right fit," Paolo explained. "When we had Paul join up with us [in December 2015], it was under the assumption that it would be a trial basis until the end of the cycle, and we just kinda got to the end of the last tour and decided that it wasn't going to be the right fit. Alex happened to be available. Our friend Mark Lewis, a producer we've worked with, has worked with Alex and said, 'This dude's awesome.' He has played with BATTLECROSS on their last album. He's a great drummer. We just needed that caliber of player, and it was obvious immediately when he came in what he was able to bring. And not just in playing, but in preparation and mindset."

He continued: "We're at that point where we know what we need and we had to go out and find exactly what that was. Alex came in and he's crushing the set, so I'm excited. Tonight's the first night we'll be unleashing him on the TRIVIUM crowd. I keep forgetting because we've played for a few weeks together, that nobody else has seen this yet. That's an exciting thing. Especially with songs you've played a million times, and when you still get excited by them, that's usually a good sign that everyone's vibing out well.

Asked if it's frustrating for him as a bassist in the rhythm section of the band to have this constant turnover with drummers, Paolo said: "As long as it's always upgrading, I'm fine. It sucks having to teach someone new stuff, but with Alex, he learned the whole set in a week. It's been very easy for us bringing him into the fold. It's really just been about showing him how we play live and how we do the endings and how we go through stuff. He brought everything he needed to the table, so it's been easy."

Paolo said that the goal for TRIVIUM on the current European tour was to have "an hour and a half worth of music" ready to perform with the new drummer. He explained: "We didn't want to over-extend to learn a bunch of songs that didn't need to be played yet. And once we get off this tour, we'll probably hand him another six or seven we'll want to play on the next tour, and maybe rotate some of the ones we're doing on this tour out. Slowly building up the repertoire."

Wandtke made his live debut with TRIVIUM in December 2015 at Knotfest in Mexico. A short time later, he appeared in an official promotional photo with the three core members of the band.

Paul joined the Florida outfit on the recommendation of DREAM THEATER's Mike Mangini and replaced Mat Madiro, who departed due to reasons of "creativity."

Madiro was the featured drummer on TRIVIUM's latest album, "Silence In The Snow", which was released in October 2015 via Roadrunner.