BrooklynVegan recently conducted an interview with SLEEP singer/bassist Al Cisneros in regard to the group's decision to reunite and their future plans. An excerpt from the chat follows:.

Q: When I interviewed you in September, were the plans already in the works, or did the ATP folks corner you at the festival and start to nail it down then?

A: "These plans have always been kind of tentative when the right time arose... We've always been in contact. We've never been estranged for a long period of time since the band broke up in '96. It's really difficult to have all three of us in the same room at the same time... touring schedules, recording schedules, all sorts of different factors. The first time we were all together after the dissolution of Sleep was at a party at my house in San Francisco about six years ago, and we talked then and it was more of a 'someday, get around to it' type thing. At my wedding last August, both Matt [Pike of HIGH ON FIRE, KALAS] and Chris [Hakius, ex-OM] were there and it was another rare opportunity to discuss it in person, rather than convey phone messages through third parties. It was then that we were like 'lets do this now'."

Q: When you decided to reunite, was it because of the fans or more because of the way Sleep ended?

A: "Promoters have constantly tried to get that band back together, so that was never an impetus. It was really more about when we were ready as people..."

Read the full interview at BrooklynVegan.