rowbar is an American sludge metal band from New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, characterized by their extremely slow, low-keyed, hardcore and brooding songs.
Starting in 1989 and taking its name from the Crowbar group in NOLA (New Orleans), Kirk Windstein went on to pioneer slow and heavy music with a unique vocal style. Their first album, Obedience Thru Suffering was released in 1991, but failed to achieve notoriety. By 1993’s self-titled Crowbar album, personal friend Phil Anselmo (Pantera, Down, and Superjoint Ritual among others) produced the record, which eventually led to national promotion on MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball. Phil sang back up on a few tracks and sang background on “Broken Glass” which rounded out the anthems “All I Had (I Gave),” “I Have Failed” and “Existence is Punishment” along with a new take on the Led Zeppelin song “No Quarter.” Following their success the band went on to record music videos, major tours with Pantera, and more albums. Their band stage antics became infamous, which led to being immortalized in the Pantera “Home Video 3” and Crowbar’s “Like Broken” Home Video.
As time moved on the band lost its founding members with the exception of vocalist/guitarist Kirk Windstein. After Todd Strange left the band, the trademark 300-pound-plus band members slimmed down. The band continues to perform, borrowing members from NOLA metal bands like Goatwhore and Acid Bath. In their recent 2005 release, Lifesblood for the Downtrodden, Pantera bassist rex brown lent his bass duties and keyboard playing and Down’s producer Warren Riker.
