TESTAMENT split with longtime drummer Gene Hoglan last month due to a clash in schedules with Gene’s other musical endeavors.
Well, according to TESTAMENT guitarist Alex Skolnick, the band already have a “short list” of drummers they have in mind to sit behind their kit for them moving forward.
Speaking with the “Meet Me For Coffee Podcast“, Skolnick said the band aren’t holding auditions as they already have a short list of “known drummers” and “some that are more up and coming”, that could potentially join the group.
Alex said: “Yeah, I think at this level, it could be crazy to do an announcement that the band is auditioning. We would just be overwhelmed. We would get overwhelmed with applications. Instead, there’s what we think of as a shortlist that’s being looked at. And it includes some known drummers, some that are more up and coming, like, more recent generation drummers.
“We’ll have no problem. I mean, I think everybody who’s being considered is really good. No question. These are tough shoes to fill, obviously. Very big shoes, big shoes, metaphorically. And… [laughs] And in real life.
“But, you know, there are some great drummers out there. And I just think among the several that are being considered, I think it’s probably going to be one of them. And, of course, I’ve gotten messages from several drummers myself, or friends or bandmates of drummers. ‘Hey man, if you guys are looking, check this guy out.’ And I’m just telling everybody, well, you know, there’s the shortlist. If it doesn’t end up being anybody from the shortlist, then we’ll see. But we have to decide soon because yeah, there could be a tour not that far away.”
Gene Hoglan, a legendary player throughout metal for years, originally played drums for TESTAMENT between 1996 and 1997, and then again from 2012 to 2022.