In March 1995, Claudio Sanchez and Travis Stever’s band Toxic Parents split and, together with Nate Kelley, formed the band Beautiful Loser. The band featured Stever on vocals and guitar, Sanchez on guitar, Kelley on drums and Jon Carleo on bass. The group was short-lived, breaking up by June 1995 after an argument over gas money. Stever left the band, and the resulting trio was named Shabütie, a word taken from African tribe chants that means «naked prey» in the film The Naked Prey.
The band spent nearly a year experimenting with a multitude of different musical styles, including punk rock, indie rock, acoustic rock, funk, and heavy metal. When Carleo left the band in August 1996, Kelley recruited Michael Todd to take his place. Todd, who was primarily a guitarist, picked up the bass specifically for Shabütie.
As Shabütie, the band wrote dozens of songs and released their first studio demo Plan to Take Over the World in 1999. The band also released The Penelope EP in 1999, shortly after which Stever rejoined the band.
Kelley left the band during a performance in late 1999, and Josh Eppard, then of the band 3, replaced him. The band went on to release Delirium Trigger in 2000, still featuring Kelley on the drums, but listing Eppard in the liner notes.
