Slipknot, 1997. Anders Colsefni wouldn't make it to the end of the year as the band's vocalist and would be replaced by Corey Taylor. Slipknot also still had Josh Brainard on guitar, who would leave in 1999 and be replaced by Jim Root. There was also Greg "Cuddles" Welts as the band's percussionist, who would eventually be replaced by longtime percussionist Chris Fehn. Slipknot was a different beast back then, as is very clearly evidenced by their 1996 demo Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat.
Though there's one really interesting demo that came between that and the band's eventual classic 1999 self-titled album. Slipknot won a Battle Of The Bands in 1996, and went on to release a two-song demo only known as the Battle Of The Bands Demo in 1997.
It's a really interesting demo to check out in 2022, as you'll recognize both songs as the genesis for two tracks (musically) from Iowa that wouldn't come out until 2001. "Nature" features some riffs that became "The Heretic Anthem," while "Lust Disease" very clearly became "Left Behind." Obviously the vocals are also completely different on the demo, as Colsefni was still behind the mic at this point.
Check 'em out below! It's a really cool snapshot of where the band was in 1997 and a glimpse into their future, even though they didn't know it at the time.
