MEGADETH Drummer Says He 'Hated' Seeing Brother GLEN Leave The Band

Kevin Stewart-Panko of Hellbound.ca recently conducted an interview with MEGADETH drummer Shawn Drover. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Hellbound.ca: Your brother [guitarist Glen Drover] left the band. From your perspective, in being in a band with your brother, how did that impact you?

Drover: I hated it, but once I came to the realization that it was the right thing to do for him, I supported him. Of course, I miss my brother. We've always gotten along really well and we've pretty much played in bands together our whole lives, except for little bits pieces, like when he was in KING DIAMOND for three years. Initially, I did everything I could do to talk him out of it. Then, I realized it was the right thing to do. He gracefully stepped down and did it at the right time. We had an 11-week break before we started up a tour which was beginning in Europe. He had a choice: he either had to stick out the rest of the world tour and then say he couldn't do it or he had to stop at that point. We talked about it and he said he just couldn't keep doing it. He couldn't give 100% and I understood that and respected it. Having said that, when all that went down, we had to find a guitar player. Ultimately, me and Glen were the ones who picked Chris [Broderick]. We had a really short list of people we knew who could, first of all, cut the gig music-wise and secondly, who were the least problematic. There are all these stupid things that come along with players sometimes, like the person has a big ego or likes to snort ants or something. You want to have someone who's the least problematic and Chris was that guy and within 24 hours of Glen leaving, Chris was all but in the band. He went down and talked to Dave [Mustaine] and it was a very quick turnaround. But it happened because of me and Glen and Glen actually recommending Chris. It worked out good, but it was definitely difficult.

Hellbound.ca: Is that sort of family decision one you've ever had to take into consideration at any point over the years?

Drover: No, because my situation is different. The only reason Glen chose to do that was because he had a very young boy. When he joined MEGADETH, his son was only two and over the course of two-and-a-half or three years, he really started to miss being with his son and it really started to eat him up. It was really difficult, just realizing that he only had one kid — the only kid he will have — and he only gets one chance to see his kid grow up and he was having a hard time with that. My kids are grown so my situation is completely different.

Hellbound.ca: So, the new album was recorded at the new Vic's Garage complex/studio?

Drover: Yeah, we had Vic's Garage built in southern California, just north of San Diego which is where [bassist] James [Lomenzo] and Dave live. Chris lives closer to L.A. I'm the only guy who lives out of state. But yeah, we had the studio constructed specifically for that purpose, to record "Endgame", and for future recordings as well. We also have a huge warehouse and rehearsal space; it's kind of a multi-use place and it was really a smart move on Dave's part because every time you go to rehearse for a tour in L.A., you have to go to a rehearsal building and it costs you an arm-and-a-leg and it's kind of a pain in the butt because you're at the mercy of the people who own the building as to when you can play and whether it's even available. It's the same with the studio where you're on the clock. This is just a different situation and made for a more relaxed atmosphere for the recording of the record and it's our place. I'm really glad he did it, it turned out to be a really cool thing and obviously we're going to use it in the future because it's our studio.

Hellbound.ca: How do things work out logistically when you guys want to get together for writing sessions or rehearsals?

Drover: I'm a plane ride away. I'm four hours away. So, if anything, it's just coordinating it through management and all that stuff and there you go. It's quite easy. Lots of bands nowadays don't all live in the exact same place and they make it work. It's a helluva lot easier than in 2004 when Dave was the only guy who lived in California. Glen was in Toronto, I was here in Atlanta and ex-bassist] James [MacDonough] lived down in Florida. It's certainly a lot easier having three guys in the band who live in the same area.

Hellbound.ca: Thus far, the reaction, on-line chatter and even some of the comments Chris has made in interviews have mentioned the new record having more of an old-school feel or vibe. I was wondering what your take was on the direction the new record has taken?

Drover: Y'know what dude? It's just a bunch of metal songs. If people think all that stuff, in a good way, and that makes them happy, then that's great and I'm all for it. We didn't go in there saying, "Okay, we gotta make this song sound like something off 'Peace Sells'" and all that kinda stuff. If it turns out that way and it gives people the thought that it's reminiscent of this or that record, then that's great. But we didn't go in there with that intention. We just wanted to go in there and make the best record that we can and hope that the consensus is positive. Those who've heard this record so far, most of the reaction has been very positive and I'm thankful for that, but we didn't have a specific formula.

Read the entire interview from Hellbound.ca.

30-second audio samples of all the tracks that will appear on MEGADETH's new album, "Endgame", are available for streaming on Amazon.de (scroll down).