Smile Empty Soul was a heavy alternative trio formed while its three members were still in Santa Clarita, California high schools in 1998. Led by singer/guitarist Sean Danielson, the band also included drummer Derek Gledhill and bassist Ryan Martin. After honing their sound with numerous hometown gigs, Smile Empty Soul began venturing to the Sunset Strip, and eventually passed a demo to Todd Parker of the Los Angeles indie label ThroBack Records. That exposure led to a deal with Jason Flom's Lava imprint, which was expanding in the wake of early signee Kid Rock's white-hot suc...