SEPULTURA's DERRICK GREEN On ELOY CASAGRANDE's 'Shocking' Departure: 'Everything Worked Out The Way That It Was Supposed To'

In a new interview with The Razor's Edge, SEPULTURA vocalist Derrick Green reflected on the departure of the band's longtime drummer Eloy Casagrande in February 2024, less than a month prior to the start of SEPULTURA's "Celebrating Life Through Death" farewell tour. Eloy has since been replaced by Greyson Nekrutman, who previously played with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES. Derrick said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, in the moment [when Eloy told us he was leaving SEPULTURA], it was shocking because we had no idea [he had auditioned for SLIPKNOT and eventually got the gig]. And it was also a week out, maybe a week and a half, before even starting the tour. I was literally packing my things to go to Brazil to start rehearsals that we had all set up and agreed upon. So, yeah, it sucked. It sucks when anyone decides to leave, and the way that it happened."

Reflecting on the fact that Casagrande had since joined SLIPKNOT, which Eloy had previously said was the band he had "always wanted" to be in, Derrick said: "I'm happy for him. I understand the opportunity. I think we all did. It was just the fact of how everything really rolled out was not the greatest. These things happen. Now looking back, it's in the past. It's, like, everything worked out the way that it was supposed to, honestly. And, of course, it was very difficult to see that at the time. It just seemed like, 'Oh, man. Here's another big surprise coming out of nowhere. How are we gonna be able to survive through this?' We've had so many throughout the history of the band. So, we were able to really push forward quickly. And we're very lucky, and very fortunate, that Greyson was available to do it and down to do it. And the fact that we got along is another thing, personality-wise. This is also an incredible factor that many people probably don't think of when it comes to creating a band or keeping a band together — the communication and the ability to get along with another person. So, all those boxes were checked with Greyson, and we were very lucky that we were able to find somebody to fill out the farewell tour at the very last minute — literally. That day we were already searching [for a new drummer] when we found out [that Eloy was leaving]. So, yeah, I think everything worked out the way that it is. I hope Eloy's happy where he's at. I'm sure he is. And we're definitely happy with the way the tour has been going."

Green previously talked about Casagrande's exit from SEPULTURA during an August 2024 appearance on the "One Life One Chance With Toby Morse" podcast. Derrick said at the time: "We had already announced that we're going to do a farewell tour. It was in December [2023] that we announced it. And so then I think it was February of 2024], we started playing shows. And so it was, like, Andreas [Kisser, SEPULTURA guitarist] calls me was, like, 'Yeah, we're gonna do rehearsals. It's all set. Everybody's in line. You'll come down to Brazil and then we'll rehearse a few days and then we'll start the tour.' And I was, like, 'Great.' [I was] literally waking up, packing my shit. I think I was flying out literally the next day to start rehearsals. Andreas [gets in touch with me and he] is, like, 'Yo…' I was, like, 'What's going on?' He's, like, 'He's out.' I was, like, 'What do you mean? What are you talking about? Who's out?' And then he was just, like, 'Yeah, Eloy's out.' And I was just kind of like falling in a black hole, like, 'What are you talking about?' It was totally surreal. It was like literally in slow motion. I was just trying to get my breath. And he explained everything. [Eloy] wanted a meeting with everybody in the band and with the managers and everything, and I wasn't there. But he came in and it was just, like, 'I'm doing this gig. I signed a contract. And I'm out.' And I was just trying to get my head around it, because it'd been 13 years playing with this guy. And I was just really in shock. I was, like, 'Dude, what are we gonna do?' And we've been in this position where it's just, like, so crazy changes. I'm sure when Max [Cavalera] left [SEPULTURA], [Andreas] was in that position, like, 'What are we gonna do?' And then when Jean [Dolabella] left and Igor [Cavalera] left, like different people: 'What are we gonna do?' It wouldn't be the first time of total chaos… I'm on the phone with [Andreas]. He's, like, 'My son showed me a video of Greyson.' I was, like, 'Greyson, he's in SUICIDAL. Yeah. I just saw the show.' And he's, like, 'I was thinking of maybe calling him.' I was like, yeah. 'Call him up. Call him up and see what's up with him.' I was, like, 'You should call him immediately.' He's, like, 'I am. I'm gonna get his number. I'm gonna call him up, see what's up. Just to see what's up.' I was, like, 'He's playing with SUICIDAL. Maybe he has some off dates.' And we're just, like panicking because we had no clue what to do. We weren't expecting this at all."

Regarding how he got involved with SEPULTURA, Greyson, who turned 23 in June 2025, told "One Life One Chance With Toby Morse": "I'm home, and I get a text from Chloe Trujillo, Robert's [Trujillo, METALLICA bassist] wife, and she says, 'Hey, can Paulo [Xisto Pinto Jr.] from SEPULTURA have your number?' And I said, 'Absolutely.' About five hours after that, I get a DM from Andreas, and it's very nice, and it's very straightforward, and he says, 'Hey, man, I love your stuff,' yada yada. 'Can I call you? I have something I would like to talk to you about.' And I said, 'Hey, man. Absolutely. Here's my WhatsApp.' So I tell my parents. My parents are, like, 'Well, what the hell's going on?' My parents think I'm joking. So then I'm also not getting ahead of myself. 'Cause I'm, like, 'I don't know what it could be,' whatever. So this is where it gets funny. And I actually never told Derrick this… So Andreas says, 'We're gonna talk at 2 o'clock Eastern Standard Time. So I wake up, I go to the gym, I'm at the gym and Andreas texts me. He says, 'Hey, man. My meeting at noon got canceled. Can I call you at noon?' So in my head, I'm, like, 'Damn, it's almost like, like an aggressive girlfriend.' So I was, like, 'Shit.' Like, 'All right.' So I was, like, 'Sure.' So he calls me. And I'm in my room. And he just tells me, he says, 'Hey, man, I love your stuff.' He said it exactly like this. He says, 'I'm kind of in a situation.' That's the exact words he said. And I said, 'What's up?' And he says, 'Eloy quit yesterday. And we have this tour planned out for a long time and it starts very soon. And I have the dates.' And I remember sitting in my room, literally, like… It was the weirdest feeling… It was a feeling of, like, 'Oh, no,' but not a bad or not a good. It was like — you know when you're learning to drive and you're on the highway and you know you have to do this. You have to, because you've got 50 years left to live, 90 years left to live, whatever it is. But it's, like, you have to. You have no choice. But, like, 'Damn, I'm gonna really have to do this?' So I was, like, 'Okay.' And again, I still had no clue. I had no clue what he meant, though. I thought he meant maybe do like a show. Because then Andreas was, like, 'I think [Eloy is] going to SLIPKNOT,' kind of thing. He's, like, ''Cause I don't know why else [he would leave on such short notice].' I was, 'Okay.' So I go on my phone, and I remember looked up SLIPKNOT dates while I'm on the phone, and I realized they started in April. So I said, 'Okay, maybe then I'll start doing the [SEPULTURA] shows that are in April, May.' So I was kind of chilling. And he's like, 'If you're interested, let me know.' I was, like, 'Dude, I am interested.' And I said — this is so funny — I said… I think Andreas laughs every time we talk about it. He's, like, 'So you can do it?' I said, 'Yes, I'm gonna do it, but I've gotta go tell my parents.' [Laughs] And Andreas is, like, 'Okay.' [Laughs]"

In an interview for the cover story of the January 2025 issue of Modern Drummer magazine, Casagrande was asked for his opinion of Nekrutman, who joined SEPULTURA at around the same time in his life as Eloy did in 2011. The Brazilian musician responded: "Yes, and when I see him playing, I can remember myself in the same spot. When I joined SEPULTURA, I was his age. That's quite interesting. He's a very good drummer. I used to watch him playing videos he posted on social media when he was playing more jazz and drum solos. He's a brilliant player and I wish him and the rest of the band all the best. I have a lot of respect for him. I wish I could talk to him more one day. Maybe we could bring all the SEPULTURA drummers together.

"Greyson came to my studio in São Paulo when he joined the band to do some rehearsals, and we had a very good talk," Eloy added. "He had just two or three weeks to learn all the songs, so I gave him some advice like, 'We used to play that song faster. Be careful with this song because we used to play it slower.' I wasn't teaching him how to play the songs because he can play anything he wants to play. He's an incredible drummer."

Asked what it was like getting the call from SLIPKNOT and how he got the gig, Eloy said: "Everything happened at the end of 2023 when I got a call from SLIPKNOT's manager asking me if I was interested in doing an audition for SLIPKNOT. That year, SEPULTURA decided to stop playing, so it was a very natural decision for me to keep playing with someone else instead of just retiring. At the end of [2023] and the beginning of [2024], I wasn't supposed to talk to anyone about that. The audition was a big secret. Nobody could know about it. SEPULTURA didn't even know, it was just something between me and the guys from SLIPKNOT. It was my decision to do the audition. I said, 'Okay, I'm interested in doing an audition because SEPULTURA is going to stop. I have one and a half years left of working with them and I'm going to be done.'

"Through the years, I have played many times with SLIPKNOT," he continued. "We shared stages when I was playing SEPULTURA, and that was the place that I always wanted to be. I grew up listening to their music, so I wanted to have the experience playing live with SLIPKNOT with a mask on my face. In my first show with the band I was thinking, 'Oh, this is really happening. Oh my god. I can't believe it.'

"Going back a little bit, before I was invited to do the audition, I took my drums to a studio in São Paulo and did a proper sound and video recording," Eloy explained. "I played six songs, and I sent it to the guys. I chose three songs and then they asked me to play three specific songs. They were 'Eyeless', 'Purity' and 'Gematria'. My flight was booked to go to the audition, so at the end of January [of 2024], I flew to Palm Springs, California, and spent ten days with them there. The first five days, the whole band was rehearsing like it was a live show. Every day, the guys came with a different setlist, and we just played those songs."

Casagrande joined SEPULTURA more than 14 years ago as the replacement for Jean Dolabella.