Kylesa

Kylesa
Kylesa performing at Roskilde Festival 2011
Background information
Origin	Savannah, Georgia, United States
Genres	Sludge metal,heavy metal,stoner rock
Years active	2001–2016 (indefinite hiatus)
Labels	Season of Mist, Prosthetic, Havoc, Prank, 20 Buck Spin, La Familia, Alternative Tentacles, Retro Futurist
Website	Template:Http://www.kylesa.com/
Members	Phillip Cope Laura Pleasants Carl McGinley
Past members	Eric Hernandez Chase Rudseal Jeff Porter Brandon Baltzley Christian Depken Brian Duke Corey Barhorst Tyler Newberry

Kylesa is an American heavy metal band that was formed in Savannah, Georgia. Their music incorporates experimentalism with heavy riffs, drop-tuned guitars and elements of psychedelic rock. The group was established in 2001 by the former members of Damad, with the addition of guitar player Laura Pleasants who is from North Carolina. The band has since undergone line up changes; the remaining original members are Phillip Cope and Laura Pleasants. In 2006, the band added two drummers (Carl McGinley of Unpersons, from Savannah, and Jeff Porter). Eric Hernandez (of Capsule, from Miami) joined in 2008 to replace Porter. The dual drum tracks are often panned strongly to the right and left.

On April 28, 2016, the band announced in Facebook post that they would be going on an indefinite hiatus, stating, "We have collectively decided to take a hiatus with no set date to reconvene."

Kylesa is a metal group that borrows elements of hardcore punk, psychedelic rock, stoner rock, sludge metal, and speed metal. They have two singers, Phillip and Laura. Kylesa formed in Savannah in 2001, taking their name from "kilesa mara", a Buddhist term denoting delusory mental states.

Guitarist and singer Phillip Cope, bassist Brian Duke and drummer Christian Depken were former members of the Savannah sludge metal act Damad, which had released two albums in the '90s. Philip Cope has been described as the Savannah "metal scene's godfather." He began playing in hardcore punk groups in the late 1980s, and in 1992 booked groups such as Buzzoven and Neurosis at a local all-ages club. From 1993 to 2001, Cope played in the group Damad. Pat Mathis of the Passive Fist label said that Damad "established a sound that's stuck-- that whole heavy, doomy Southern kind of metal. When you've got these old punk guys who listen to the Allman Brothers and start a metal band, that's kind of what you get." Damad changed their name to Kylesa in 2001 with the addition of Laura Pleasants, a native of North Carolina who attended the Savannah College of Art and Design.