Interview with Belgian rock heavyweights Triggerfinger
- Sarah Williams
- Feb 23
- 4 min read
After more than 25 years together, Triggerfinger aren’t interested in becoming a nostalgia act. The Belgian trio has built its reputation on raw power and explosive live shows, but with “Come Clean”, they open a new chapter shaped by time, change, loss and renewed creative hunger.
Following a long break, side projects, and the passing of founding bassist Monsieur Paul, the band returns with a fresh perspective while holding on to the chemistry that’s carried them for nearly three decades. In this conversation, Triggerfinger reflect on evolution, honesty, working again with producer Mitchell Froom, and what still drives them to plug in and start over.
• After 25 years as a band, how do you stop Triggerfinger from becoming a museum piece of its own past?
As a band, we try to challenge ourselves by not repeating the same things over and over again. We’re also different people now than when we started, older, with more life experience, more baggage, kids, relationships... all of that shapes who we are. That naturally brings new perspectives and new stories to tell, and that’s a great thing.
• “Come Clean” is described as a shift in your musical DNA. Was changing your sound exciting, or a little terrifying?
When we write music, we don’t consciously think about changing our sound or direction. We just follow the flow and make the music we like. But making a new album is always challenging, it’s stepping into the unknown, and that can surprise you in the best ways. It was also great working with Mitchell Froom again. He’s an old-school producer with a strong sense for arrangement, and he approaches things differently every time. He really encourages you to be like a child on a playground to experiment and make mistakes.
• Fans know Triggerfinger for raw, overdriven power. This track feels tighter and more rhythm-driven. Were you deliberately trying to surprise people?
We never do anything deliberately to surprise people. We simply follow what we like musically. Over the past 25 years, we’ve always explored different sides of our sound even on earlier records we had softer or more subtle tracks. Variety has always been part of who we are.
• You’ve worked with Mitchell Froom for years. At this stage of your career, what does he still challenge you to do differently?
Working with Mitchell again was fantastic. He has a deep understanding of song arrangement and constantly finds new ways to approach things. He pushes you to stay curious, to experiment, and to allow yourself to make mistakes. That sense of freedom keeps you evolving as a band.
• You took a long sabbatical after 2019. When you finally came back together, did the band feel familiar or did it feel like starting over?
The break actually started after our 2018 tour celebrating 20 years of the band. We felt it was a good moment for everyone to explore other projects, Ruben made a solo record, I worked on Sloper, and Paul released his own material. Then COVID hit, and everything was postponed for another three years. After the pandemic, we started playing smaller summer festivals, so we saw each other regularly again.
So it never felt like starting all over again.
• Ruben talks in the song about the difficulty of confessing feelings. After decades in the spotlight, is honesty harder or easier than it used to be?
It really depends on the situation. But as long as you stay honest with yourself, things usually fall into place in the end.
• The band has lived through huge highs—opening for the Stones, viral success with “I Follow Rivers”—and also real loss. How has that shaped the way you approach making music now?
All of those experiences shape you as a person. The highs and the lows, whatever the reason leave their mark. Often it happens unconsciously when you write. It influences how you see the world today, or how you look back at the past from a distance. All of that feeds into the music.
• With Monsieur Paul’s passing last year, continuing the band must carry a lot of emotion. Does being on stage together feel different since then?
Paul had already stepped away from the band about two years earlier due to health reasons, so we had begun that transition before his passing.
We played a series of farewell shows in Belgium and the Netherlands, which were very special. After that, Geoffrey Burton who had already been touring with us as a second guitarist stepped in to take over bass duties. Of course it’s emotional, but it’s also a continuation of something we built together.
• You’ve always been known as a ferocious live act. When writing new material, are you thinking first about how it will feel on stage rather than on record?
No, not at all. When we’re writing, we never think about the live aspect. That comes much later, when we start rehearsing for a tour. Then you sometimes feel instinctively that a song will really work on stage. It’s never a rule, it’s all about feeling and letting go.
• After everything Triggerfinger has been through—breaks, changes, tragedy, and rebirth—what still gives you that “hunger” to plug in and start again?
The hunger to make new music and the chemistry between us. That’s something you only truly understand after being in a band together for so long. We genuinely enjoy making records, and we love being on the road. We’ve been doing this for 28 years now, and it’s still a lot of fun. Why change a winning team?
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