Both Dronjak and Strömblad were in other bands: Dronjak was in "Crystal Age", Strömblad was in In Flames. Because of this, HammerFall was not very active during this time. The only concert they played was a local music contest called "Rockslaget". The band had not written many songs yet, and usually only played covers of bands like Pretty Maids, Judas Priest and Alice Cooper.