SEPULTURA's DERRICK GREEN On ELOY CASAGRANDE: 'He's One Of The Most Talented Drummers I've Ever Seen'

Australia's Everblack Media recently conducted an interview with frontman Derrick Green of Brazilian/American metallers SEPULTURA. You can listen to the entire chat below. A few excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On the "creative roll" SEPULTURA has been on for their last three albums:

Derrick: "It's definitely a challenge, but we really love what we do. It's been many years, [and] it still brings us such a joy to play onstage and to create and to come up with ideas. We've become very comfortable as this unit. I think that adds to the music, playing all the time all around the world and writing and coming together as a band. I felt this has always been an evolution happening with SEPULTURA."

On using the melodic side of his voice on the band's forthcoming "Quadra" studio album:

Derrick: "This is something I think we all wanted to do. We put much more of our personalities into the music, which is extremely important. It was definitely one of the hardest albums to record, but at the same time, it was one of the easiest because we had so much preparation and build-up before going to the studio. We were very well prepared and that helps a lot."

On the subject matter found on "Quadra", including the song "Last Time", which tackles addiction:

Derrick: "I think it was something where I know so many different addicts. I've dated people who were addicted, whether it be drugs, so I've been around that a lot in my life. There's even certain things you can be addicted to as far as like people are buying are a lot of crap and things like that. It's not only drugs, but I think this type of society we live in can make you very addictive. I definitely wanted to write songs that go very deep or things that touch me or people that I know. For me, it just makes the album very honest in so many ways."

On the song "Agony Of Defeat":

Derrick: "'Agony Of Defeat' is not a happy song. [Laughs] It's definitely tackling with depression. My mother suffered from depression and was something, as a kid, that I didn't really understand and something that wasn't talked about as much now, but it still needs to be talked about a lot more. You find so many different suicides happening of people. You think, 'Oh my god. That person was famous and rich. They had everything.' But you really don't know. A lot of times, nobody is saying what's happening inside of them. It's impossible to know what's going on. I wanted to write a song about that, the agony of defeat, and really how people can spiral into a depression from a lot of loss or different things are happening around them, a lot of negativity. It's always important to keep your head up and be able to speak about it and find a solution to what's happening inside of you. I just really wanted to write a song dealing with that."

On the impact drummer Eloy Casagrande has had on SEPULTURA since he joined in 2011:

Derrick: "It's a tremendous impact. It's undeniable because he's such a strong force. He loves playing metal music. He's one of the most talented drummers I've ever seen, honestly. That power is consistent from beginning to the end. It really has rubbed off on all of us to really push ourselves further. He's such a perfect match for the band. He really is always influencing us in so many ways to really go beyond, above and beyond."

"Quadra" will be released on February 7 via Nuclear Blast. The LP was created at Sweden's Fascination Street Studios with renowned producer Jens Bogren. It will be followed by a world tour starting in March.

SEPULTURA comprises Green, guitarist Andreas Kisser, bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. and Casagrande.