Megadeth

A Chat with Dirk Verbeuren of MEGADETH

Interview by Ken Morton - Photo by Joe Schaeffer

Megadeth has returned with The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!, their 16th thrash metal magnum opus now available worldwide via UMe! Currently on the road with Five Finger Death Punch, the Megadeth legacy rages on with an all-out vengeance! Prior to the launch of their touring and right before the unveiling of The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!, Highwire Daze interviewed drummer Dirk Verbeuren to discuss the devastating new album, life on the road in a post-pandemic age, time spent within the ranks of Soilwork, and more...

The new single Solider On that was just released is amazing! What does that song mean to you? Dave

says it’s about walking away from a toxic relationship. Yeah, that’s definitely the lyrical subject. But obviously, as is the case with lyrics, it’s also a kind of read between the lines thing. I think Dave has been proven to be a brilliant lyricist over the years, and I don’t think Solider On is an exception when it comes to that. As far as musically speaking, I think it’s a very driving song. It’s intense and there’s a lot of interesting parts happening. I think there’s some really killer guitar work – the chorus is amazing. And I love what I get to do on drums on that one as well.

How does The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead! compare to the classic Megadeth albums?

That’s a great question! You know, it’s a different time and place – but I do think The Sick The Dying… And The Dead! has the legacy of Megadeth embedded in it. Kind of by default of course, because I think anything

Dave is gonna do is going to have that to some extent. But I do think that – and I’ll speak for myself – that having grown up with records like Peace Sells and Rust In Peace, So Far So Good... So What, Countdown – I think that’s kind of in my DNA. So working together on this album, I did want to bring some of that out – as far as my interpretation of it. Not just being in the band but also having grown up to be a fan of the band. The album has a whole is pretty intense. There’s quite a few heavy songs, but there’s also as usual a lot of melody – which is a key thing for Megadeth – always has been – always will be. It’s kind of a wide range of things put together than somehow makes sense – and I think that people from any era of the band will find things in there that they like. So, it’s hard to compare it to any specific album or any specific timeline. I think some of the vibes go all the way back to Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! all the way up to Dystopia and everything in between.

How much influence do you think Dave Mustaine’s cancer scare had on the album lyrically and tone wise?

That’s hard to say. Dave got his diagnosis and treatment as we were in the middle of writing the record together as a band. We were actually all in Nashville where Dave lives. We spent basically 24/7 in this house together as a band. We shared a house next to Dave’s house where we spent our time working on the music and working on the new material – and that’s when Dave’s treatment started – kind of in the middle of that. Being that guy that he is, that still didn’t stop him from showing up and working with us almost every single day. There were a few days out of the month we were there where he was too tired to do much, but for the most part, cancer didn’t stop him – which was incredible! Nor did his treatment. He was pretty determined from the beginning to not let it stop him and affect him. So, I think in that sense, it didn’t negatively affect the album. I’m sure it changed his outlook on his life a little bit, because I think it would for anyone. To what extent, you would have to ask him, but I do think when you go through something like that, you tend to look at life maybe through slightly different lenses – and maybe that’s the way he wrote some of the lyrics and some of the music – possibly.

People see Dave Mustaine as a legend – an icon! How do you see Dave Mustaine as working with him?

He definitely is a legend and an icon – there’s no doubt about that. There’s quite a few reasons for that, but I think one of the main reasons is that he is somebody who does not give up on his vision. Persistence in any domain is a very important thing if you want to succeed – and Dave had his vision early on and stuck to it – and still sticks to it to the day – and is still extremely passionate about the band. He’s not some jaded man – not at all – he’s quite the opposite of that. I think he’s very driven still and extremely motivated by his band and his music. It’s basically such a big part of his life and everything revolves around that – except for maybe when it comes to family. That’s very important for him as it is for all of us. But yeah, he’s a great band leader. He takes on his responsibilities in a way where things get done, but people feel respected and treated well in the process. And I think that’s why he’s still here and the band has so many fans and why people love Dave.

Megadeth was basically one of the first bands out of the gate when touring was allowed again after the pandemic. What was it like touring during that particular time?

We took all the necessary precautions, so I don’t think it was particularly scary – but a little bit weird because there was less spending time around other people. Basically, every band we were on tour with stayed in their own bubble – there wasn’t much hanging out going on. It was just kind of a different vibe – a bit more insolated. You would have a bit less of the brotherly thing that you would have with the other bands being on the road and with fans and friends. So that’s the precautions that we all had to take in order for it to happen. As far as the shows went, they were fantastic! It was a great

lineup together with Lamb Of God, Trivium and Hatebreed. And I think people were just hungry for live shows at that point. This was Summer of 2021 and there weren’t that many bands on the road. I think people were just stoked to see a killer metal show.

What are you looking forward to the most to the tour with Five Finger Death Punch?

I’m looking forward to playing some new songs. Being on the road is always great, but with this new album coming out, there’s an extra level of excitement. And it comes out while we’re on this tour with Five Finger Death Punch, so it’s really going to be an exciting time. I’m really excited to be bringing this material to the stage, because we have been sitting on it for a bit. We’re very excited to have people hear it and to play these songs onstage.

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The entire time you were in Soilwork for over a decade, did you ever encounter Megadeth or dream that you would be in such a legendary band?

I think we shared festival stages a couple of times and I had met some of the guys individually, but never Dave though. And for the other part of your question, I don’t think it’s something I ever dreamt of because I don’t think you dream that’s even possible. During my time in Soilwork, I was very focused on that. I was very active in that band. I just tried to give that band my all because I was really involved in it and was motivated by it – they’re a great bunch of people and great musicians. I think Soilwork is a very underrated band – and so I was doing my best the whole time to push that band as hard as I could with the means we had. So, I really wasn’t sitting there thinking about being in another band. But that being said, when I got the call, it was an amazing thing because I grew up listening to Megadeth like a lot of us – and again, it’s not something you see coming. You don’t sit around and go, “Yeah, it would be cool if I played in that band one day.” It just kind of happened and I had to adjust to the idea – but it was just an amazing experience really.

Do you remember the first time you saw Megadeth live?

Yes! I think I was 15- 16 years old at the time. I know it was in late 1990 during the Clash Of The Titans tour in Europe. I saw then in France where I was at the time in Paris. So that was for the Rust In Peace album – it

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Deathcryptopia News. Subscribe to The Deathcryptopian Times by emailing us at deathcryptopia@gmail.com NEW ALBUM COMING SOON! ‘Daemonium Bellum’ was the legendary old school lineup with Nick Menza and Marty Friedman. It was an amazing show. I think it was only the third live show I ever saw. I went together with a school friend who I’m still in touch with – who was also a metal fan. So yeah, it’s pretty amazing to be back at that. We actually played that same venue a couple of years ago where I saw the band as a kid.

So being on the stage with Megadeth was extremely special to me.

Do you have any messages for Megadeth fans who are reading this right now?

Check out The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead! I’m sure you’ve heard the singles. Be prepared for an excellent album – and come see us live! We look forward to seeing you all! It’s been a strange couple of years with the pandemic, but it seems like things are slowly getting back to how we were used to them before. We’re looking forward to meeting you all and sharing our new music with all of you.

https://megadeth.com/