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Matt McDonald Will Rejoin Perpetual Groove at the Georgia Theatre, Formal Reunion Set for 2012

Perpetual Groove at the Georgia Theatre in 2007

Keyboardist Matt McDonald will rejoin Perpetual Groove on a fulltime basis in 2012. He will replace John Hruby, who has been a member of the band since 2008. McDonald joined Perpetual Groove in 2001 and remained with the group through the spring of 2008, when he parted ways with the band due to family commitments as well as other personal reasons. Hruby—who a veteran of the Ohio jamband Guest—has played keyboards in the band since mid 2008.

“Despite public speculation, the guys and I were always close,” McDonald tells Relix/Jambands.com. “If you look at my Xbox Live history, [drummer Albert Suttle ], and I have countless games of Halo, and [bassist Adam Perry] and his family were with my family at Thanksgiving last year. The week that my son was born, there are plenty of pictures of [guitarist Brock Butler] holding him. So the guys and I have never been closer. We all live between Athens, GA and Atlanta. For me, I had taken care of some of the personal stuff [that led to my departure] and kind of got a break from the road.”

Perry tells Relix/Jambands.com that Hruby is leaving Perpetual Groove for personal reasons, but will remain with the band through the end of the year. “It was upsetting to hear [he was leaving] but at the same time we had to respect his wishes and why he was having to make that decision,” Perry admits.

McDonald plans to join Perpetual Groove for a full electric performance on WUOG 90.5’s Live in the Lobby at 8 PM tonight. He will also sit in with the band tomorrow during their hometown show at Athens, GA’s Georgia Theatre. Perpetual Groove was slated to headline the historic venue the night it burned down in 2009. McDonald will also join Perpetual Groove for an extensive sit in Atlanta on December 30 and 31.

“We all decided that if we were going move forward and continue the only person we wanted to play keys was Matt,” Suttle admits. “So if he didn’t want to do it we may have played our last show.”

McDonald not only plans to play keyboards with the band but also contribute some new original material and return to his first love, the electric guitar. “I’m interested in is incorporating some guitar parts in our songwriting and also bringing back some of the covers that we used to do,” Butler says. “ I’m really into the [idea of] two guitars because you can change our whole feel, even by adding a second guitar for a song or two [each night].

Late last week, all four members of Perpetual Groove sat in for a joint interview with Relix/Jambands.com. That interview is now available online.