Metal Inside(r) Home Quarantine is Metal Insider’s new column during this time of isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. We asked artists five questions on what’s been keeping them busy ranging from their favorite movies, food they’ve been eating, music they’ve been listening to and more. We caught up with Trivium drummer Alex Bent as he reminds us to spend more time with our pets and to do what we can to keep our mood and mental health up.
What have you been doing to pass time during Quarantine?
I’ve been focusing on building and expanding my Twitch channel. I’ve been on Twitch for about two years now and since the quarantine started, I’ve had a lot of time to dedicate to that. I’ve been gaming, doing drum streams, and I’m planning on doing live podcast streams with other drummers and musicians. Aside from that, my daily life hasn’t been too different from my regular off-tour schedule. I practice drums a few times per week, and my Skype drum lesson schedule has been slammed.
My dog Brooklyn has been getting lots of walks so I think she likes having me home so much. She has even started running with me which we’ve never really done before. She doesn’t let me sit around on the couch, that’s for sure!
Have you been listening to any music or have any playlists worth checking out?
The only time I really sit down and explore music is when I’m doing my hand and feet exercises. I like to put on a bunch of 90’s and 2000’s alternative rock. It’s fun because I can get my exercises done and at the same time listen to a bunch of throwbacks. Some of the bands I like to exercise to are bands like Alice in Chains, Green Day, 311, Incubus, and a ton more.
A lot of people have been spending this time cooking including making their own bread, what food have you been prepping during this time?
I try to stay in my lane when it comes to the cooking and leave that to my wife, Christina. We need to keep a roof over our heads so now probably isn’t the best time for me to potentially burn our house down! I’m usually just her sous chef when she’s cooking. Naturally, we tend to eat a lot of Latin food since I am Puerto Rican and she is Mexican. We love to try all different types of cuisines but the beans and rice always win in our home.
In terms of entertainment, what movies, TV shows, books, or games have been keeping you busy?
I hopped on the Tiger King train as soon as it came out. We binge watched it in a couple of days and we are planning on re-watching it again soon because I’m sure there’s a ton that we missed.
A couple weeks ago, we also binge watched the latest season of 60 Days In. I love prison shows, and 60 Days In is cool because you get to experience it in a different way that keeps you on the edge of your seat.
For games, I’ve been playing Call of Duty: Modern Warfare just about everyday. I recently downloaded Mortal Kombat 11 so I’m planning on starting that up soon too!
What advice do you have for your fans in isolation during this time?
Do anything you can to keep your mood and mental health up. Take advantage of spending time with your pets and/or family if they’re in the home with you. If you’re away from your family and friends, try and make it a point to check in with them as often as possible. Make a list of the goals that you’d like to accomplish, maybe health and fitness or even home organizing goals, and try to get that stuff done while you can. We are fortunate to be so connected during this time, it’s easy to hop on your social media apps and socialize with people even though we can’t do it in person right now.
Trivium’s new album What the Dead Men Say is out now (order here). Read our review here and check out our interview with guitarist Corey Beaulieu at this location.
