Sludge stalwarts Crowbar helped originate the swampy New Orleans metal scene that eventually produced Eyehategod, Acid Bath and Down. Founded in 1990 by guitarist/vocalist Kirk Windstein, Crowbar developed a signature mix of groaning riffs, glacial tempos and soaring, rough-hewn vocals that underscored their tales of struggle and sorrow. Early sledgehammers “All I Had (I Gave)” and “Existence Is Punishment” foreshadowed the soulful melodicism of their late ‘90s anthems “Planets Collide” and “To Carry the Load”. The band merged both styles in the 2000s and 2010s on “I Feel the Burning Sun” and “Plasmic and Pure”.