Sometimes it’s all in the intent. Too much of the stuff that I’ve come across in recent years is in reality heavy metal played by short-haired jocks trying to cash in on the “thug” aspect of punk without having to pay any attention to the subculture that comes along with it, and you can totally suss out those bands from the very first note. Those kinda bands make me just wanna laugh in their faces ‘cause you know deep down they wouldn’t last fifteen minutes in front of a hostile Slayer audience, let alone a night at the Cuckoos Nest circa 1981. Then there are those bands whose sound is just up to its eyeballs in metal influence and yet still sound like a hardcore band, and you just know they mean business. Kylesa is one of those bands. Although I ain’t too into the metal tinge to what they’re doing, it’s patently clear that the “crossover” brass ring is just not even in their field of vision and they’re more interested in pummeling you with the metal than rocking you with it. It’s all in the intent, man, and they mean you no good, and that makes all the difference.
–jimmy (Havoc)