Le Tour Du Metal conducted an interview with former Soilwork and current Megadeth drummer Dirk Verbeuren on June 19th at Hellfest in Clisson, France. You can now listen to the chat via the YouTube clip below; a few excerpts have been transcribed as well.

On how he landed the Megadeth gig:

Dirk: "Well, I've been friends with Chris Adler (Lamb Of God), who [was] the Megadeth drummer on the latest album (Dystopia') and on the recent tours. I toured with him many years ago with Soilwork — we were opening for Lamb Of God and Killswitch Engage in America, on a big tour — and we've always stayed in touch more or less since then, and he's always told me that if he ever needed somebody to help him out, he would call me. So that's what he did. He kept his word. And also I know that the guys in Megadeth were also doing their own research at the same time — Dave (Mustaine) was kind of looking — so it all kind of just came together for me. I got lucky."

On whether he is playing the Megadeth drum parts as close to the original versions as possible:

Dirk: "I'm trying to close to that, because I think that's my job right now. When you come into a band that has a legacy, like Megadeth, you don't come in, 'Oh, I'm gonna change everything.' It doesn't work that way. I've been, of course, a fan, like most people from back in the day — Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?, Rust In Peace; big albums — so I'm kind of familiar with the songs, especially with older songs, so I try to just put my own groove into them but really respect the way they were originally played by the original drummers."

On how he was accepted by the other members of Megadeth:

Dirk: "It was very smooth. The guys are really, really cool, really awesome, nice people, very welcoming. You know, immediately when I got there, after one day, I sat down with Dave Mustaine and we had some talks, and he was very open about everything. There really hasn't been any bad feeling at all. It's been a month now that I've been on the road with them, and it's been nothing but great. I think it's all about how you deal with a situation like that. I've been in bands for 25 years, so I kind of know how it works, and I know what my place is — I think I do — so I try to just do what people expect of me, and if they ask me for my opinion, I'll give it. And they do; Dave is always asking, 'What do you think of this song? Should we play this one?' So it makes me feel at home."

The global Dystopia tour, which is currently in full swing, will have visited five continents by the end of 2016. Current tour dates are listed below:

August
2 - Teatro Caupolicán - Santiago, Chile
4 - Estadio Ruca Che - Neuquen, Argentina
5 - Estadio Ruca Che - Neuquen, Argentina
7 - Espaço das Américas - Sao Paulo, Brazil
9 - Expominas - Belo Horizonte, Brazil
12 - Net Live - Brasilia, Brazil
13 - Siará Hall - Fortaleza, Brazil
16 - Pepsi On Stage - Porto Alegre, Brazil
18 - Spazio Van - Curitiba, Brazil
20 - Jockey Club - Asuncion, Paraguay
22 - Luna Park - Buenos Aires, Argentina
23 - Luna Park - Buenos Aires, Argentina
26 - Estadio Jorge “El Magico” Gonzales - San Salvador, El Salvador
29 - Pepsi Center - Mexico City, Mexico

September
1 - Plaza de Toros Santa Maria - Santiago de Queretaro, Mexico
3 - Mexico Metal Fest - Monterrey, Mexico
20 - Casper Events - Center Casper, WY
22 - The Joint - Las Vegas, NV
24 - “Ozzfest” San Manuel Amphitheater - Devore, CA
27 - WaMu Theater - Seattle, WA
28 - Matthew Knight Arena - Eugene, OR
29 - City National Civic - San Jose, CA

October
1 - 1st Bank Center - Broomfield, CO
3 - Mid America Recreation & Conv. Complex - Council Bluffs, IA
4 - Roy Wilkins Auditorium - St. Paul, MN
5 - Sears Centre - Chicago, IL
7 - iWireless Center - Moline, IL
8 - UWM Panther Arena - Milwaukee, WI
9 - Joe Louis Arena - Detroit, MI
11 - Sands Event Center - Bethlehem, PA
12 - DCU Center - Worcester, MA
13 - Mohegan Sun Arena - Uncasville, CT
14 - Prudential Center - Newark, NJ
16 - BB&T Pavilion - Camden, NJ

In other news, Megadeth have released a video for "Post American World", from their latest album, Dystopia.