After releasing Mate. Feed. Kill. Repeat. (their first demo album,) Slipknot continued to work in on demoing new tracks, which were recorded and meant to be released on a second album of demos in 1997/1998. This album has been rumored to be called “Crowz,” but there was never any official title or tracklist announced. Slipknot then got signed to Roadrunenr Records and focused on their self-titled album.

Mick Thomson said that “There is no record called ‘Crowz’.” So that’s how it is.

According to some rumors, “Crowz” was going to be released on October 31, 1997 (exactly one year after the release of M.F.K.R.)

Songs from the so-called “Crowz” were recorded, and re-recorded, and re-recorded… Before Slipknot got signed they were working on a “revised” M.F.K.R. with better produced versions of those songs, along with newer stuff that was written with Corey on vocals.

They were going to do two things: 1) Give them a quality demo to ship to labels.
2) If not signed, they could put it out independently as a replacement for M.F.K.R. Some of this stuff was recorded at SR Audio Studios with Sean McMahon, some was done at Juniors’ Motel in Otho. It really depended on what was needed at the time. Some of those songs have many multiple versions and mixes. For example, there are at least two versions of ‘Prosthetics’. Some songs, like Snap, were done quickly at Otho and sent out as a demo to give record companies something new compared to M.F.K.R.

“Crowz” refers to a saying which started following a spooky incident when some guys from Slipknot were taking Paul home after a studio session, and the road to his place was covered entirely with crows, or blackbirds, or whatever. Thousands upon thousands of them. When the headlights flashed over them, they all took to the trees as one big, black mass. It was eerie. Then, they all sat in the trees and phone lines watching us. That’s where Crowz came from. Plus, Shawn found a dead one in his driveway, and kept it in a big, commercial pickle jar, and carried it around at shows until it turned to mush, During shows Shawn would open the jar, this would cause him to vomit all over the place and also cause fans to start vomiting all over the place. It was (sic), it was kept in the jar with all the bacteria and flesh eating creatures. It started secreting this brown liquid and became a fine sauce. Some kids broke the jar open and played catch with it for awhile and now it’s disposed.

This is a Story about Crowz written by Anders Colsefni (Andrew Rouw)

Dark it was, so dark and chilly around late November, I think it was late November, anyway, I was walking home from whatever the hell it was that I was doing that evening.
I had no car, as a matter of fact I still have no car, but what I’m trying to say is I rounded the corner that leads to my pad, I took maybe five steps and came to a complete halt.
The entire street appeared to be alive, writhing around in sinewy shadow like from the trees, as well I noticed that whatever they were doing, they noticed me too because they all stopped making the noise they were making and turned their eyes collectively at me.
My blood went to ice and i thought about turning around and running away. I stood there facing the mass, there must have been a couple hundred thousand of them and they were really paying close attention to me.
I think i almost sauced in my pants but I chose not to run away instead, I inched my way closer hoping I wouldn’t be bitten, because god knows if those fuckers have diseases.
I was no more then ten steps away from them and they hadn’t moved yet so I started wondering what the hell I should do next when all of a sudden the one closest to me let out a blood curdling squawk that echoed into the cold night.
About three seconds later the entire body answered in unison with the same sound and immediately lights from the neighborhood houses began popping onto see what the hell had made such a loud hideous noise.
It seemed to me like they were an army and the one. In front of me was the general looking out into the center of the enormous mass of black.
I saw a lump that they had gathered on top of, I did know why there would be something that large laying in the middle of the road for them to perch up on seeming to sense my stare in their direction.
The ones that formed the lump pushed their way off the lump and into the crowd as a gesture to show me what I was thinking.
Once they were off the lump I saw that what they were standing on was a mixture of red and white, but I was too far away to pick out any details.
Once again seeming to read my mind the group parted in the middle like moses parting the sea, to create a path for me to the center of their moot.
I felt like I was going crazy. These things knew what I was thinking without using any of the good judgement that I had always prided myself in having.
I carefully walked into the black insanity towards the objects I lent lay waiting at the center.
Just as each step brought me closer each step also made my vision clearer as to what I was looking at. Twenty feet away I knew what it was but I didn’t stop walking.
I had to be certain, I had to be sure. I could not be mistaken. Is it what I thought it was?
C R O W S …
Yes it was. My heart gave way to complete and utter sadness at the sight before me, as I looked down upon the remains off our small children that had mostly be endevoured.
I momentarily forgot about the abomination that surrounded me. I didn’t notice the convenient path way closing back up behind me, nor did I witness the saliva dripping from the carnivorous mouths.
They were still hungry and they had developed an appetite for humans.
I began to weep for these young ones when the first flew up to my shoulder and began snipping at my ear.
Quickly followed a couple more, soon I was enveloped in the black mass but I couldn’t feel anything at all.
I had possibly witnessed the worst thing imaginable and I couldn’t feel anything. Nothing, not anything, except for a wave of dizziness that passed over me and a bright light, glaring at me though the holes between them.
All of a sudden, I heard the unmistakable sound of a car horn-blasting and I thought for a moment that I was saved when the giant group took to the air.
They had been scared off by the cars lights and horn. Since I couldn’t feel anything, it took me a minute to realize that they had taken me with them.

Need more information about Crowz? Why not visit MFKR1.com
Credit: Metabolic666.com