For many musicians, joining a childhood favorite band is the ultimate fantasy. For Megadeth drummer Dirk Verbeuren, it is a reality that still feels impossible to process. During a recent appearance on the milestone 100th episode of the “Vinyl Bang” podcast, hosted by Nick Martin and Jeff Grindstopher, the Belgian percussionist opened up about his early days as a fan and the surreal trajectory that led him to the throne behind Dave Mustaine.
While discussing his extensive vinyl collection, Verbeuren recalled the specific moment he discovered Megadeth via their 1986 masterpiece, Peace Sells… But Who’s Buying?. The discovery happened not in a record store, but by chance at a local market in France.
“I remember going to a little flea market in the town outside of Paris where we lived in a small town, and I just looked at the cover and I looked at these pictures… But these pictures of the four bandmembers [on the album cover], they looked so badass to me on there,” Verbeuren recounted (as transcribed by Blabbermouth). “And I was, like, ‘I don’t know this band, but I gotta get this. This looks killer.'”
He estimated this took place around 1987 or 1988, noting that in the pre-internet era, discovering an album a few years late didn’t matter—finding it at all was the victory. Once the needle dropped, the connection was instant.
“Megadeth immediately stood out to me from other things I was listening to at the time. The vocals, the lyrics, just the approach was its very own kind of thrash metal… I just knew I loved it. And so that became one of my important albums growing up, which, obviously, given what happened many years later in my life, it’s kind of crazy.”
The drummer also shared a poignant “full circle” moment involving a specific venue in Paris. As a 15-year-old, Verbeuren attended the legendary “Clash of the Titans” tour at Le Zénith in October 1990—one of his very first concert experiences. Decades later, he finds himself on that same stage, looking out at the crowd from the other side.
“I have since now three times played with the band at that very venue. So every time I go there, it blows my mind because I’m, like, ‘I can’t believe I was here as a teenager seeing the band I’m now a part of.’ And all these years later, to be on that stage is just, like [laughs], ‘What happened?'”
When asked if joining Megadeth was a lifelong goal, Verbeuren offered a humble perspective. He explained that he had never set his sights that high because the idea seemed too far-fetched to even entertain. Having spent 12 successful years with Swedish melodic death metal act Soilwork, he was already content with his career before the call from Mustaine came.
“[It is] beyond a dream because I would’ve never even dared to dream that,” Verbeuren admitted. “People will say, like, ‘Oh, was that your craziest dream?’ And I’m, like, ‘No,’ ’cause I would’ve never even dared to imagine that that would happen. I was just happy to be making music… So it’s beyond — you can’t even put words on to that, really.”
Looking back at that day in the flea market, flipping through vinyl bins with no idea of what the future held, remains a source of awe for the musician.
“If you had told me at that time, ‘Yeah, one day you’ll be in that band,’ I think my head would’ve exploded. So, yeah. Pretty cool. Pretty crazy where life can take you.”
