SEPULTURA's DERRICK GREEN: Embarking On Farewell Tour 'Made Sense To Us, To Really Call It An End On A High Note'

In a new interview with Greece's Mr. Music, SEPULTURA singer Derrick Green spoke about the band's decision to embark on a "farewell" tour. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We've been touring now on our farewell tour for over a year. We knew that we wanted to try and play as many shows around the world that we possibly could, but we didn't wanna do it in one block. So we've broken it up into two years, and so this is the final year now. And it was something that really made sense to us, to really call it an end at a very good time in our career, on a high note. To end and leave feeling good about our decision, feeling good about how we're playing, our ability to play, the fact that we're all getting along. It's all these positive things, and we felt that it's a good time to step away and celebrate the history of SEPULTURA, because it's such a long and incredible history, very unique. And this is what we're doing now. This is the idea, is to really have that celebration with people that have been involved in the history of SEPULTURA for all the years."

Asked to name "three or four factors" that led to the decision to call it quits at this point in SEPULTURA's career, Derrick said: "I think just life in general. I think all of our lives are constantly changing and evolving and moving, and so your mindset also changes. With us, the cycle of creating and then recording and then touring can be like a vicious cycle. It's an incredible cycle, but we've done it for so many years. And as artists, it's important for us to really step outside the box, to really challenge ourselves in everything that we do, especially when it comes to creating. And so when the creative process becomes very robotic and the same, then it becomes more of a 'job job'. And this is something that is less appealing to us, because we've always been involved in music for other aspects, for the love of the art, and not just because we have to do it. And so when it starts to become very robotic and the same and tedious, then I think it's time for us to re-evaluate where we're at, and that's what we did. We did that re-evaluation and we all agreed that it was something that... In order for it to wait for something bad to happen or to break down, in order to break up or to stop moving, it just didn't make sense to us. It made more sense to stop on our own accord and to stop on a very high note. And so I think just life in general and just where we're at and positioning of the band and the history, it just made sense. [We've been doing it for] so many years, more than most bands have been able to maintain. It just ran its course, and we're happy to celebrate everything, all the achievements and all the years that have been created with SEPULTURA. And so this is something that [is] not necessarily to feel sad about, but again, a celebration with all our fans and traveling around the world doing that and this final goodbye."

Regarding how knowing that this is SEPULTURA's final tour changes the emotional energy on stage every night, Derrick said: "Well, I think with us, it's always important that we put all our energy on the stage when we're there, whether it was in the past or now. I think it's incredible to see and feel this feedback from fans. This is something that's very different from the past, because they know it may be the last time that they're seeing the band on the stage. And so you can feel that. At least I feel it on stage. And after the show or before the show, there's a lot of memories, great memories we have from playing different places and meeting certain people and being involved in certain cultures. That all hits during the show — before the show, after the show. I didn't realize how much it would have an impact on me, but it's a lot stronger than I imagined, especially being face to face with fans and hearing their stories."

SEPULTURA kicked off its farewell tour on March 1, 2024 at Arena Hall in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. The sold-out show marked the band's debut performance with Nekrutman, who previously played with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES.

SEPULTURA announced previous drummer Eloy Casagrande's departure on February 27, 2024, explaining in a statement that he was leaving to join "another project", with Eloy later confirming that he was the new drummer of SLIPKNOT.

The news of Eloy's exit from SEPULTURA came just two months after the band announced it would celebrate its 40th anniversary in 2024 by embarking on a "farewell tour" which would cover the entire globe.

In SEPULTURA's statement, the remaining bandmembers expressed their shock over Casagrande's departure, saying they were "taken by surprise" that their now-former drummer would "abandon everything related to SEPULTURA" less than a month prior to the start of the tour.

SEPULTURA is putting together a live album commemorating its last run of shows. The band is recording 40 songs in 40 different cities for what SEPULTURA said will be a "massive compilation of our best, most energetic moments on stage."

The final North American leg of SEPULTURA's "Celebrating Life Through Death" tour featured support from thrash legends EXODUS, hardcore heavyweights BIOHAZARD, and newcomers TRIBAL GAZE. The trek kicked off on April 29 in Montclair, New Jersey and visited major cities across the U.S. and Canada, including Montreal, Detroit, Chicago, Denver, and Los Angeles, before concluding on May 29 at The Wiltern in Los Angeles. Along the way, SEPULTURA also performed at major festivals, including Welcome To Rockville and Sonic Temple.

SEPULTURA's latest EP, "The Cloud Of Unknowing", came out on April 24 via Nuclear Blast Records. The band previously released two singles from the effort: "The Place" and "Beyond The Dream". SEPULTURA collaborated on the latter track with Sérgio Britto and Tony Bellotto of TITÃS.