Kylesa Unveil Their New Lineup Ahead of Reunion Shows
Back in August, we were all stoked to learn that sludge metal outfit Kylesa was back and gearing up for some reunion shows. Since then we’ve learned of even more dates, but one thing remained up in the air — who was going to handle the rhythm section for the band? As it stood last year, only vocalist/guitarists Phillip Cope and Laura Pleasants were featured in the announcements, but obviously that doesn’t make a complete band.
Then came the announcement this morning that not only was the band revealing some December shows in the U.S., but they’d finally revealed who would be filling out the roster — two former members of Nausea. Bassist John John Jesse and drummer Roy Mayorga will round out Kylesa’s ranks, filling the sound out and giving the rest of the band their much needed thump.
In an interview with Decibel, Pleasants said both Nausea members joined the band when Jesse reached out to ask about the open positions.
“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.”
Cope, who was also in the interview, said the band initially tried to reunite with longtime drummer Carl McGinley. Unfortunately that never came to fruition, resulting in the band having to pivot since he doesn’t play drums anymore.
Kylesa have a long list of shows already on the books, but they’ve got some U.S. dates added to their itinerary. You can find the full list of dates below. The U.S. dates will go on sale this Thursday at 10 a.m. local time.
Kylesa tour dates
04/17 Tilburg, NET – Roadburn Festival
04/18 Oslo, NOR – Inferno Fest
05/09 Copenhagen, DEN – A Colossal Weekend
05/10 Aalborg, DEN – 1000 Fryd
05/12 Athens, GRA – Gagarin 205 Live Music Space
05/31 Toronto, ON – Prepare The Ground
06/22 Clisson, FRA – Hellfest Open Air
07/30-08/02 Wacken, GER – Wacken Open Air
07/31 Berlin, GER – Lido
08/13 London, UK – Underworld
08/13-17 Bristol, UK – Fernhill Farm (‘ArcTanGent‘)
12/04 Savannah, GA – District Live (feat. Royal Thunder & The Maxines)
12/06 New York City, NY – Le Poisson Rouge (feat. pageninetynine)
