Drummer Gene Hoglan Has "a Real, Positive Feeling" About Dethklok's Future

The band play their first show in five years this fall

BY Calum SlingerlandPublished Aug 20, 2019

This November, Dethklok are set to play their first show in five years as part of the second annual Adult Swim Festival. While many fans have yet to forgive the network for cancelling Metalocalypse in unceremonious fashion, live drummer Gene Hoglan says their are brighter days ahead for Brendon Small's show.

In conversation with the Everblack podcast, Hoglan was asked about the implications of Dethklok headlining an event put on by the network.

"The simplest summation that I can come up with for the reason that we're playing the show is Adult Swim is extending an olive branch, it kind of seems like, to the band for the future," he said. "We'll see what that future might entail."

Back in 2016, Metalocalypse creator Small told Loudwire's podcast that his wish to give Dethklok a finale on the network was met with a definitive "no."

"There was no debate, there wasn't even a returned phone call. It was a hard 'no,'" Small said at the time. "It was about as hard of a 'no' as you could possibly get … It's basically like a crappy relationship at the end where we should probably break up, but they kept on dangling the idea of doing this thing in front of me and then dangling other TV show ideas and stuff like that."

Hoglan admitted "there's been some time since the band has been able to either play shows or attempt to move forward" using the Dethklok moniker due to network ownership rights. 

"That's why Brendon's been concentrating on his Galaktikon project, which the last Galaktikon album, Become the Storm, that was essentially a Dethklok record," the drummer explained. "If you ask me, it sure sounded like Dethklok, and there are some Nathan Explosion kind of vocals on it. I think that was Brendon's… Like, 'We can't be Dethklok anymore, but we've still got music in us, so we'll have to change the title, change a bit of the scenery around the concept.' But musically, it had all the same challenges of Dethklok."

Hoglan concluded saying, "You just never know about the future. I wish I knew more about it. But I've got a real, positive feeling about some things. And that's about the most I can say about it. But I know Brendon could elaborate. I always feel good about Dethklok's future. I'm always the one holding out the hope."

He added, "I know the network was a bunch of fuckers, and things didn't end up on the best note, but you never know. And so we'll see what that sort of attitude brings. Hey, you never know. That sometimes brings a lot of positive stuff in the future. So I'm always down for that."

Small and Hoglan last released Dethklok's Dethalbum III in 2012, alongside live bassist Bryan Beller.

Hear Hoglan's appearance on the Everblack podcast below.

The Adult Swim Festival takes place in Los Angeles on November 15 to 16. Learn more about the upcoming event here.

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