Project 86: Still Evolving After Nearly Three Decades
By Jimmy Sorrells with Austin Hale
Some bands build a career around one sound. Project 86 built theirs by refusing to stay in one place.
Formed in 1996, the band has moved through hardcore, alternative metal, nu metal, post hardcore, hard rock, electronic music and now the industrial metal world of P86. Through the changes, Andrew Schwab has remained the central voice and creative force.
I first discovered Project 86 around 1998 through a VHS tape, right when the self titled debut was introducing the band to a larger audience.
My reaction was immediate. Mind blowing. Original. Instant fan.
At the time, I was already listening to bands like P.O.D., Living Sacrifice, Stavesacre, Disciple, Tourniquet and Zao, but Project 86 stood apart.
Songs like “Pipedream” and “Stalemate” still hold up for me today. Even on that first record, Schwab’s voice fit the hard hitting music, while his lyrics came from a personal point of view that made them relatable.
Contributor Austin Hale sees the debut as the stepping stone that established the band’s identity, mixing metal, rap and raw energy into something that was unmistakably Project 86.
Drawing Black Lines Changes Everything
If the debut introduced Project 86, Drawing Black Lines defined them.
Released in 2000 and produced by Garth “GGGarth” Richardson, the album brought together Andrew Schwab, Randy Torres, Steven Dail and Alex Albert in what remains my favorite version of the band.
Richardson had already worked with Rage Against the Machine, and knowing he produced Drawing Black Lines says a lot about why the record sounds as good as it does. It is polished enough to capture every instrument while still sounding aggressive.
For me, Drawing Black Lines is everything P86.
“One Armed Man,” “Me Against Me” and “Set Me Up” remain favorites. These became the kind of songs where the crowd moves and seemingly everyone knows every word.
I have seen Project 86 at least 15 times, and one early memory still sticks with me. Around 1999 at Carowinds in North Carolina, I watched Alex Albert break two snare heads within about five minutes because he was hitting them so hard.
That physical intensity was part of the Project 86 live experience.
Austin ranks Drawing Black Lines third in the catalog and calls it groundbreaking for its time.
Around this same period, Project 86 appeared on Sūp the Chemist’s 2000 album Dust on the song “Is This a Dream?”
The band was also reaching bigger stages. I saw them on the tour with P.O.D., (hed)p.e. and Linkin Park, and it remains one of the most memorable shows I attended.
Another favorite tour featured Project 86, Living Sacrifice and Stavesacre.
Truthless Heroes
Truthless Heroes arrived in 2002 and was immediately different.
I was not impressed the first time I heard it.
It grew on me.
Today I still listen to it, with “Little Green Men,” “Your Heroes Are Dead” and “Hollow Again” standing out.
The album was more polished and radio friendly than what came before it. That may have hurt the connection with some existing fans, but it also helped introduce the band to new listeners.
Years later, Schwab talked about the creative tension surrounding the record and the pressure to make something that would satisfy the label.
That lines up with how I heard it. At the time, Truthless Heroes felt more driven by record label expectations than the band simply following its own creative instincts.
Austin sees it very differently.
It is his favorite Project 86 album.
He describes it as a concept album focused on the battle between the individual mind and the influence of media and culture. For him, the way the songs connect makes it the strongest record in the catalog.
That difference of opinion is part of what makes going through this discography interesting.
One fan’s difficult transition can be another fan’s favorite album.
Songs to Burn Your Bridges By
After the major label experience, Project 86 independently released Songs to Burn Your Bridges By in 2003. An expanded Tooth & Nail version followed in 2004.
For me, the aggression was back.
“The Spy Hunter,” “Breakdown in 3/4” and “Safe Haven” are favorites.
“The Spy Hunter” especially stands out. The guitar hits hard, the song is catchy, Schwab’s voice was made for it and the lyrical imagery works.
The song also has an interesting connection to the previous record. It had originally been planned for Truthless Heroes before eventually finding a home on Songs to Burn Your Bridges By.
Austin ranks the album second and sees it almost as a continuation of the circumstances surrounding Truthless Heroes, while bringing the band back toward its heavier identity.
A Band That Refused to Sit Still
…And the Rest Will Follow arrived in 2005 and reunited the band with GGGarth Richardson.
I think this record is underrated.
“My Will Be a Dead Man,” “All of Me,” “Doomsday Stomp” and the title track remain favorites. The bass, guitars and drums hit hard together, and Schwab’s vocal identity was fully established by this point.
Austin completely disagrees with me on this one.
He ranks it last among the pre OMNI studio albums and feels it lacks some of the pounding energy found on their stronger records.
For me, it is actually their most underrated album.
Then came Rival Factions in 2007.
Once again, Project 86 changed.
Electronic sounds, post punk influences and an almost 1980s flavor entered the picture. Like Truthless Heroes, it took time for me.
I love “Evil (A Chorus of Resistance)” both lyrically and musically.
I also give the band credit for changing with the times without simply chasing what everyone else was doing.
Austin sees Rival Factions as an uneven experiment. Some ideas work for him while others feel like they came from left field.
Picket Fence Cartel followed in 2009.
My favorites are “The Butcher” and “Destroyer.” “Destroyer” is actually my choice for the most underrated Project 86 song.
Austin ranks the album fifth and views it as a strong combination of older and newer Project 86.
Project 86 Live
15. Live. arrived in 2010 and captured something fans already knew.
Project 86 was a serious live band.
I have seen them at least 15 times through the years. Andrew Schwab has always been a strong frontman who knows how to interact with a crowd, and the band sounds even heavier live.
Hearing a crowd sing a song like “Stalemate” together made me appreciate it even more.
A second live album, OMNIFEST (Live), would eventually bring the newer OMNI era together with songs from the band’s earlier history.
The Independent Years
By Wait for the Siren in 2012, the music industry had changed and Project 86 changed with it.
The band embraced crowdfunding and independence.
I love it when a band goes independent and gains full creative control.
The album also brought together an impressive group of musicians.
Andrew Welch had connections to Disciple and Capital Lights. Blake Martin came from A Plea for Purging. Rocky Gray had played with Living Sacrifice, Evanescence and We Are the Fallen, while Cody Driggers was known from The Wedding.
Guest vocals included Bruce Fitzhugh of Living Sacrifice and Brian “Head” Welch of Korn and Love and Death.
“Fall, Goliath, Fall” is one of my favorite later era Project 86 songs. “Off the Grid” is another standout.
Austin ranks Wait for the Siren fourth and considers it a great example of how a band can try something new without losing its identity.
Knives to the Future followed in 2014.
I hear it as a continuation of the hard rock and hardcore direction with some nu metal influence still present.
“Spirit of Shiloh” and the title track are my favorites.
The production is very well done.
By this point, trying to force Project 86 into one genre had become almost pointless.
I prefer that.
I would rather hear a band evolve than make the same album repeatedly.
Christmas and The Influence EP
Project 86 even found a way to make Christmas music sound like Project 86.
This Time of Year arrived in 2008, followed later by A Very P86 Christmas and P86 Christmas (2025).
Then there is The Influence EP.
Released in 2016, the EP found Project 86 interpreting music associated with Beastie Boys, Soundgarden, Fugazi, The Soggy Bottom Boys and Billie Holiday.
That collection says a lot about the musical DNA behind a band that was already difficult to categorize.
Sheep Among Wolves
Sheep Among Wolves arrived in 2017 and, for me, it was their best complete album since Songs to Burn Your Bridges By.
It was heavier and carried some of the feel of the earlier 2000s material.
“MHS,” “By Constantine,” “Sheep Among Wolves” and “Into Another” are my favorites.
Looking back, the album feels like the end of an era.
There were electronic elements beginning to surface, but what came next would push those ideas much further.
Austin ranks the album sixth and hears it as a move back toward haunting, dark and aggressive territory.
From Project 86 to P86
The transition into P86 may be the biggest shift in the entire story.
My initial reaction was simple.
This is different.
But it is still good.
I miss the older Project 86 sound, but I have followed Schwab since the first album. I like his musical style, I like his lyrics, I own his books and I supported the OMNI crowdfunding campaign.
The cyberpunk concept required me to listen with open ears.
This is not simply another Project 86 album.
Industrial metal, electronics and modern metal influences are much more prominent.
OMNI, Pt. 1 arrived in 2023, followed by OMNI, Pt. 2 in 2024.
My favorites include “Vital Signal,” “When the Belfry Speaks,” “Metatropolis,” “Skinjob” featuring Cory Brandan, “UltravioleNt,” “Taser 5.0” and “Boiling the Ocean.”
The albums are telling a story, and while the songs work individually, the concept gives them more depth when heard together.
Do I immediately hear the old Project 86 underneath them?
No.
And I think that is part of the point.
Reptile Goddess and OMNI, Part 3
The next chapter is already underway.
The campaign for OMNI, Part 3 launched in 2025 with plans to continue the story and sound established by the first two OMNI records.
As a supporter, I received the exclusive new song “Reptile Goddess” in September 2026.
I love it.
The song confirms the direction Andrew Schwab is taking with P86.
It moves between slower sections and harder beats, with electronics, industrial metal and multiple breakdowns and transitions.
The guitar work immediately stood out.
Schwab’s vocals are just as good as ever.
I dig it like a backhoe.
To me, “Reptile Goddess” sounds like a good combination of OMNI, Pt. 1 and Pt. 2. Some of the vocal delivery reminds me of older Project 86, but the music is firmly in the industrial OMNI world.
After almost 30 years, Schwab is still pushing forward rather than trying to rebuild the past.
Still Here
My favorite Project 86 era remains 1998 through 2004.
Most of my favorite songs come from the first three albums, and the first four records are the ones I return to most often.
Austin’s ranking looks very different. His favorites begin with Truthless Heroes and Songs to Burn Your Bridges By.
That difference says something about the depth of this catalog.
There is no single Project 86 era that every fan has to choose.
The musicians changed.
The sound changed.
The industry changed.
Andrew Schwab figured out how to change with it.
Record labels eventually gave way to independence, crowdfunding, Patreon and direct support from listeners.
For someone who only knows Drawing Black Lines, understand that P86 is different. It is industrial, conceptual and intentionally separate from the early sound.
Give it more than one listen.
For someone who discovered Schwab through OMNI, go back and hear the original Project 86.
That is where this story started.
The band holds a special place in my heart because it was there when I was first discovering heavier music. Picking up those albums and eventually seeing Project 86 live again and again only strengthened that connection.
Why are we still talking about Project 86 in 2026?
Because Andrew Schwab is still creating relevant music and pushing the boundaries of his artistic expression.
After nearly three decades, the Project 86 story still is not finished.
Discography:
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