Kula Shaker
Kula Shaker's reformation has its origins in sessions for a charity album made with the New Braj Village School (a private school in Badger, California, for young people which includes as part of the curriculum teachings about Krishna and devotional music). The album "School of Braja" was recorded in 2004 and finally saw release in late 2006. Crispian Mills, who masterminded the album, arranged not only that the Jeevas play on two tracks, but he also got in touch with his old bandmate, Alonza Bevan. The two worked on a song together for the album, "Braj Mandala", to which Paul Winterhart added drums. Jay Darlington was asked to be part of the sessions, but declined the opportunity. At the time of the recording, this was announced on the official Jeevas website as Kula Shaker having reformed to contribute a song to the album and was referred to by Mills as a Kula Shaker reunion in subsequent interviews. Additionally, the "School of Braja" album credits officially state that Kula Shaker appear on the track "Braj Mandala". The sessions for the track went so well that Mills and Bevan began writing together again and making plans for a full-on Kula Shaker comeback that would encompass live touring and the further release of new material. A new band website was also commissioned.
Crispian Mills
Following Kula Shaker's break-up in 1999, he spent two years experimenting with new musical ideas, touring briefly in the UK with as part of a band called Pi. A disagreement over the quality of an album proposed for release saw Mills depart from his UK record company in 2001.
In early 2002 the speedy formation of a new band called The Jeevas with Andy Nixon and Dan McKinna (previously both of the band Straw) led to relative success, with the first album selling over 100,000 copies in Japan. Sales elsewhere were low but the band remained a hot ticket in smaller UK venues. Despite extensive touring and sizeable hardcore fanbase, The Jeevas split in early 2005, with Nixon and McKinna forming a new band named The Magic Bullet Band.