The Mystick Krewe of Clearlight came together in 1996 as an instrumental side project led by guitarist Jimmy Bower and drummer Joe Lacaze of the New Orleans sludge metal group Eyehategod, along with members of Crowbar and Down. Bower and Lacaze's inspiration from the start was to get away from the pummelling nihilistic dirge metal of Eyehategod and use their new project as an outlet for the improvisational music that they had absorbed growing up in New Orleans, whether it be jazz, soul, funk, or rock. The Krewe's influences range from the Southern blues-rock of The Allman Brothers Band, native soul and funk legends The Meters, The Neville Brothers, and Dr. John, and, on the heavier side of things, the groove-heavy riffs of classic Deep Purple. The idea of no barriers frees up these metalheads by trade and has given them the chance to show off their musicians' chops and indulge themselves in lengthy guitar solos and extended jams that have more in common with the festive spirit of Mardi Gras than a headbanging doom rock concert. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.