Interview with Paolo Gregoletto (bass) of Trivium
TRIVIUM’s new album ‘What the Dead Men Say’ is set for release on April 24th 2020 and I was quite excited when Oktober Promotion gave us the chance for an e-mail-interview with songwriter and bassist Paolo Gregoletto.
Reflections of Darkness [RoD]: First of all, thanks for making the interview possible. How does it feel to promote an album during a lockdown, without speaking to your interview partners face to face and seeing their reaction?
Paolo: It’s not ideal but we are making the best of the situation and luckily we’ve been able to do all of the things we needed to do for press.
RoD: You’ll support MEGADETH and LAMB OF GOD on their tour this summer, how do you prepare for the tour?
Paolo: If the tour happens on time we will be rehearsing a lot beforehand. We have some big production that will also need to be worked on and made before the dates this summer.
RoD: When did you start writing the songs and how was the road until the album was finished? Any challenges?
Paolo: We generally do not write on tour. We will do our writing sessions in between the tours to allow ourselves time to decompress from the road and have a clear mind for writing. It’s definitely made us way more productive this way.
RoD: You played several covers since you released your last album three years ago. Did these songs have an influence on the new album?
Paolo: I don’t think so. The covers from the last album were just for fun and nice way to break the ice with a new drummer and producer last time.
RoD: You already released two tracks, ‘Catastrophist’ and ‘What the Dead Men Say’. Who came up with the ideas for the story?
Paolo: I was the main lyric writer for the two songs. I took the title for ‘What the Dead Men Say’ from a Philip K. Dick short story. He’s definitely one of my favourite writers and influenced those lyrics a lot. ‘Catastrophist’ was one of the first songs I wrote lyrics for and I think reading ‘The Uninhabitable Earth’ was a big inspiration for it. I was viewing it more in terms of both the climate crisis but also other manmade disasters like war, but this current virus has given it a whole new meaning to me. A lot of fans have commented about the timeliness of the words.
RoD: Your new album ‘What the Dead Men Say’ in three words?
Paolo: A fun record!
RoD: What brought you into the music and what drives you as a band after more than 20 years?
Paolo: Being able to play shows and see how far we have grown this band has been an immense source of inspiration. We also have a lot of fun together and enjoy each other’s company, so this doesn’t feel like work all the time. I also love to travel and this affords me the chance to see so much of the world that I would have never seen.
RoD: Do you have any plans for a tour in Europe?
Paolo: Yes but things are fluid and dates might change depending on what happens.
RoD: Your favourite song on the new album?
Paolo: It’s tough to pick but the first two songs are some of my favourites at the moment.
RoD: A question you always wanted to answer, but no one ever asked?
Paolo: Fans always ask me “Where is Mr. Brown (my cat)” and he is doing well and living in Florida with my parents.
RoD: Any message for the fans?
Paolo: Stay safe and stay healthy!
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