Xero is the self-titled 1997 demo tape by American band Xero (now known as Linkin Park) sent by the band to record label executives while trying to get signed. The tape contains some of the band's earliest known recordings. The existence of this tape first came to public knowledge in 2022 when a copy previously owned by former Warner Bros. Records executive Barney Kilpatrick was auctioned by his family following in death by suicide on December 03, 2021.[1][2] The label had passed on the band three times before signing a developing deal with them in November 1999.[3][4][5]
Background
Following the release of their self-titled demo tape, Xero played many showcases, but vocalist Mark Wakefield couldn't perform live because of a really bad stage fright, so he was fired in 1998.[6] "I wanted somebody in the band who had the same drive and passion for melodic singing vocals as I had towards rapping vocals," said Mike Shinoda.[7] Bassist Phoenix explained their situation, "We went through a period where we kinda didn't know what to do with the band, like, the singer we had been playing with was transitioning out and we didn't know if we wanted to continue; if we did, if we wanna continue with just with five guys or how that would even look or work out. And, you know, we tried a bunch of different guys that were LA-based, whatever, and nothing was really working, nothing we're excited about. When we heard Chester stuff he had done, we're just like 'ok, this guy can sing, we need to get him out here quick and see what the deal is.' We got him out and then 'ok, if the band is gonna work then this is gonna work. Otherwise, that's the end of Linkin Park as it is, kind of thing."[8]
Mike talked about being the sole frontman during this period, “I only sang on my own for around two months. When we did shows, I’d get friends to the other vocals. It was really fun. It’s strange, though, whenever I’ve written vocals, I’ve always written them with two people in mind. I think it adds a cool depth and vibe to the songs.”[9] During a LPU chat, Mark Fiore from The Snax recalled being asked by Brad to learn every song on the Xero cassette tape for a show.[10][11]
In Los Angeles, there was a magazine called Music Connection in which the band had announced a vacancy. One of the people who auditioned for Xero was Boris Bouma of the Dutch progressive metal band Frozen Sun, and who would later be known as the frontman of the American band Epidemic.[12][13]
T.J. Demonte, a singer from Hartford, Connecticut,[14] was recommended by Staind vocalist Aaron Lewis. He was the vocalist for Sugarmilk (originally known as Crumb), a band that opened for Limp Bizkit and Staind.[15][16] He said, "I was one of the very first contacted by Jeff Blue and Mike Shinoda to fly out for an LP audition. Aaron Lewis from Staind told them about me so I signed an NDA and they asked for a video of me and sent these early tracks.They were an assembled band lie Back Steet Boys formula. The said they spent their advance on gear and could not afford 900 plane ticket for me togo to California, after agreeing to pay, they then said I would have to find a motel. I got nervous that this was a scam, and made the worst decision of my life. Theyewere XERO, Hybrid Theory and then Linkin Park"[17] Demonte explained he received two tapes from the band, one with three instrumentals and another with vocal versions for reference. "I have versions of the tunes when the rapping was the focus of the tune and the singing was the refrain or hook only..... I have my tracking vocals with the audition tape, as well as my demo that got me a Next Day Air Fedex package from Jeff Blue, with lyrics, this demo and the other studio tracks partially finished along with Mike's 4-track ideas"[18] He later went on to front a band called No December with whom he released an EP called Mobius in 2004.[19]
Kirk Harper, the singer for a band native to Arizona called Oil, was approached by Jeff Blue after one of his shows in early 1999 and asked to cut vocals for a Xero audition. He said, "Jeff happened to be in Phoenix for New Year's Eve and hanging at a bar my band Oil was headlining that night, side note during this time me and my drummer Clancy were recording the Lynch Mob smoke this record so things were pretty crazy at the time. Long story short after the show Jeff approached me outside and said he Really liked what he saw in my vocals and stage performance etc and thoght i would be perfect for this band he was working with from LA so he sent me a disk with 4 or 5 tunes and no vocals and asked if i could cut vocal tracks on the tunes and send them back to him asap of course i said sure and a buddy of mine at saltmine studios help me cut the tracks and do a quick mix so we could get it back to jeff and the guys. I got a call from Jeff telling me that he and all the people in their office were freaking out that they All Loved the songs and my performance on the cd so Jeff said i needed to talk to Mike and gave me Shinoda's number and we spoke seemed a very nice guy and apparently gave alot of heed to Jeff and what Jeff said about how it was going down so i thought i had the gig, i was really excited because inside i KNEW these songs were special and different then all the other nu metal out at the time so next step was head to LA and meet the guys and do some jamming but Jeff wanted to talk a bit more with me just to gleen an understanding on what everyone expected and how things worked etc etc and i made my fatal mistake and asked a business question, i guess i shouldn't have but i did. I asked " so Jeff, your company has been working with these guys for a while now yes"? Yeah he says. I say so "how much money have you guys invested so far"? Jeff says none of my business and how dare i ask i kinda laughed and said to him im perfectly ok with getting fucked on this deal i just need to how fucked im getting? I laughed he did not and told me that they had spoken with Chester from Grey Daze and i said Chester is awesome and the rest is history."[18] Harper and Oil’s drummer, Clancy McCarthy, went on to work on George Lynch’s infamous rap metal album Smoke This.
Track Listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rhinestone | Delson Bradford, Hahn Joseph, Shinoda Michael Kenji, Wakefield Mark | |
| 2 | Pictureboard | Carter Barrence Eugene, Delson, Hahn, Shinoda, Wakefield | |
| 3 | Esaul | Delson, Hahn, Shinoda, Wakefield |
Personnel
- Mike Shinoda
- Mark Wakefield
- Brad Delson
- Rob Bourdon
- Dave Farrell
- Joe Hahn
Gallery
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Side A
-
Side B
External Links
References
- ↑ Barney Kilpatrick Dead: Veteran Radio Promo Exec and Artist Manager – Billboard, December 08, 2021
- ↑ "Deftest" To Be Auctioned On May 19th, 2022 - Newswire - Linkin Park Live, April 4, 2022
- ↑ Interview: Linkin Park | Rolling Stone, March 14, 2002
- ↑ Linkin Park Wants Out Of Warner Bros. Contract | Billboard, May 03, 2005
- ↑ Linkin Park Steps Out - TIME, January 20, 2002
- ↑ Scuzz Meets Linkin Park - YouTube, July 18, 2014
- ↑ 009.jpg
- ↑ Linkin Park | Rare Interview | The Lost Tapes, September 26, 2019
- ↑ Linkin Park, you're a nu metal boy band. Discuss. | Louder, October 23, 2015
- ↑ LPU Chat with Mark Fiore Summary | Linkin Park Fan Corner, January 16, 2014
- ↑ Mark Fiore Chat Zusammenfassung 16.01.2014 – BlackChester.de, January 16, 2014
- ↑ Rockezine.com interview with Epidemic on Apr 22, 2003, April 22, 2003
- ↑ Frozen Sun - Encyclopaedia Metallum: The Metal Archives
- ↑ TJ Demonte (tjdemonte) on Myspace
- ↑ Sugarmilk/Crumb - Homepage | Facebook
- ↑ LIMP BIZKIT PERFORMANCE STRUMS MOSTLY ANGER - Hartford Courant, October 24, 1997
- ↑ LP unproduced-forgotten by tehotaone | Free Listening on SoundCloud, September 11, 2012
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 Hybrid Origins: A Look Back At The Early Days - Linkin Park Live, 2021
- ↑ No December - Mobius (2004, Digipak, CD) | Discogs
