Back in November, Slipknot announced that they had cut ties with Jay Weinberg, their drummer of nearly a decade. Weinberg said he was "heartbroken and blindsided" by the decision (which one-time Against Me! bandmate Laura Jane Grace called "poetic justice"), and went on to join Suicidal Tendencies last month.
At a warm-up gig in Pioneertown, CA, ahead of headlining this weekend's second edition of Las Vegas's Sick New World, Slipknot unveiled their new drummer — who was obviously wearing a mask, but their familiarity likely still manages to shine through for those well-versed. Joining the band from behind the kit was Eloy Casagrande, who recently departed time-withstanding Brazilian outfit Sepultura.
Casagrande announced that he was leaving the band with a statement posted to Instagram at the end of February, writing that "decisions needed to be made thinking about new cycles that will come." The drummer had been with Sepultura since 2011, three years before Weinberg joined Slipknot, and the Brazilian band announced that they had replaced him with Grayson Nekrutman — who just spent the year beforehand playing in Suicidal Tendencies.
Metal is a team sport; trades are bound to happen. Stereogum made a helpful diagram for those following along at home.