Kylesa reveal new lineup, announce first US reunion shows (NYC with pg.99)

Savannah sludge greats Kylesa have been gradually rolling out reunion dates, including previously-announced appearances at Netherlands festival Roadburn in April and Toronto festival Prepare the Ground in May/June, and now they’ve announced their first two headlining US club shows. They play a hometown show on December 4 at District Live with Royal Thunder and The Maxines, followed by a return to NYC on December 6 at Le Poisson Rouge with screamo legends pageninetynine.

Kylesa also shed more light on their reunion in a new interview with Decibel, revealing that co-leaders Phillip Cope and Laura Pleasants will be joined by the rhythm section of NYC crust punk veterans Nauseau: Roy Mayorga (drums) and John John Jesse (bass). They said:

Why did you decide to seek out new members?

Phillip Cope: Laura and I are the founders and constant members of the band. Carl [McGinley] was our longest running bandmate for close to ten years, but we checked with him, and he doesn’t play drums anymore and has wished us his best. We have nothing but respect for all the past members. With most everyone living in different cities now, we decided to reform our rhythm section in a way that makes sense with where we are currently at, and we feel this is a really strong lineup.

How did you decide on Roy & John John?

Pleasants: John John hit me up on IG “reporting for duty,” should we need a bass player. We had already made our first announcement about Roadburn and Inferno, so word was out that we were reforming. Although we were talking about lineup possibilities in the background, we had not yet solidified a band. I was a bit shocked when I heard from John John, so I half-jokingly texted him back saying, “Sure! Just hit up Roy and we’ll be off to the races.” The next day I got a phone call from Roy!

When I called Phillip about the possibility of jamming with these guys, I could hardly contain myself. I was like, “Dude… ok… are you sitting down? I have some news…” I think it was Phillip who turned me on to Nausea in the first place when I was probably 18. We’re longtime fans and even covered a song of theirs back in the day.

About first experiencing Kylesa, John John Jesse said, “I first saw them when we played together in the early 2000s in Brooklyn when I was playing guitar in Morning Glory. They blew me away, and I’ve been a fan ever since.” Roy Mayorga first saw them in 2009 and said he “was blown away immediately.”

Phillip also said they haven’t written any music yet, “but it hasn’t been ruled out,” and Roy added, “The chemistry is definitely there. I’m sure once we get to know each other even more, something really cool will happen. I feel it.”

Read more at Decibel.