Smile Empty Soul

The number three has quite a reputation. The sayings are familiar. The third time's the charm. Everything happens in threes. Three strikes and you're out. Well, in the case of Smile Empty Soul and their fifth album 3s, the number is rich source of inspiration and defines where the trio is today, in the here and the now. And for vocalist/guitarist Sean Danielsen, bassist Ryan Martin and drummer Jake Kilmer, the present is the best possible place to be.
While 3s is the alt rock band's fifth album, the number three factored heavily into the surrounding parts of the equation. The band lineup has been the same for three albums in a row and has been in tact since 2006, which, if you want to get fancy, is the double of three years. There are three members. The band has three words in its name. But the association goes even deeper.
"We noticed during the process of making the record, the number three popped up in our lives individually and as a band," Danielsen explained. "It was everywhere. It was like we were surrounded by threes so it was most appropriate."
He continued, "Each band members turned 30 during the process of making the album, and we've released an album every three years since we've been with this lineup. It's our third record we've released with this lineup. I could on and on and on, since there are so many. We sat down and made a big old list. It was overwhelming."
Point taken that three is a lucky digit for Smile Empty Soul. But numerical significances aside, things are stable for the band after a period of uncertainty. "Not a lot has changed as far as what we do," Danielsen as quick to point out. "But our sound has developed a little. The big story for us is that we have new home as far as the label goes, and a new management team."
The new administrative pieces, namely label eOne, allow the band to focus on what's important and that's making music. Danielsen admitted to feeling invigorated by the new people surrounding him. "This is the fourth label we've been on in five records," he admitted. Despite that roller coaster ride, which is somewhat common in the music industry during this era (as opposed to indicative of an issue with the band), Smile Empty Soul remained undeterred from the singular mission and goal of making the best music possible. "We had tough time finding the right label, but now we have. We have our fanbase coming with us and we can expand our brand and reach more people."
The built-in fanbase that Smile Empty Soul bring with them is dedicated and the result of musical elbow grease. The band's post-grunge sensibilities, unstoppable work ethic and constant tour schedule, which has seen them performing alongside bands like Breaking Benjamin, Seether, Fuel, Cold and more throughout the years, and sticks-to-your-cranium singles like "Bottom of a Bottle" earned them a gold-selling album with 2003's self-titled debut. It's the love of the fans and the passion for making music that keeps Danielsen and company on this path. "Music is what we do and none of us have any idea what we do if we weren't doing this. Stopping is not an option, giving up is not an option, even if we have to deal with these headaches," the singer said.
With a catalog that also includes Anxiety, Vultures and Consciousness, Smile Empty Soul set out to make the album they wanted to make. They're living on the darker side of life (and music) and the resulting album is laced with a "creepy, eerie vibe." That "tripped out" nature is something Danielsen personally gravitates towards, but it's not head down, doom and gloom. It's therapeutic, redemptive and cathartic at once. After all, that's how the best records make the listener feel.
"This record is more mature than any of our previous albums and it's more musical than any of our past releases in general," Danielsen said. "It has some of the same qualities, catchy choruses and hooky parts here and there, but we've expanded our sound, so it's more progressive, riff-oriented and a little heavier." Essentially, it's the Smile Empty Soul we've come to know and love, just jacked up a notch.
Going "a little heavier" was the organic result of writing what felt right, as opposed to any sort of calculated decision to try something new. "You have to go with the flow of what's coming out of you," Danielsen said. "It was not conscious."
What was conscious, however, was Danielsen's desire to push himself as a lyricist and to go admittedly "a little more cryptic this time around." He confessed to being "less outright and straightforward," a fan-friendly strategy that will certainly engage the fan and invite them inside the song even more as they work to construct the meaning for themselves, thus deepening their bond with the album. "I went for that on purpose," Danielsen said. "Because the lyrics use to be straight up. I spent a lot of time talking about them. I want to explain less and let people come up with their own meaning. Whether my lyrics strike you this way or that way, or however they do strike you, all that matters is that they struck you in some way."
3s was recorded in the band's native Southern California, at a handful of studios in the Valley and North Hollywood. Producer Eddie Wohl, who worked with the band on Consciousness, also manned the board on the new album at his Babyland Studios. The level of comfort with Wohl helped make 3s the consistent, tightly constructed album that it is. "He gets us and our sound," Danielsen said.
The first single from 3s is "Afterlife," a song that is heavy but up-tempo and is representative of the album as whole on both sonic and stylistic levels. The song is generally about getting yourself outta Dodge. "I was being tired or frustrated in a situation and having the need to get out of town," Danielsen said, sharing a tiny particle of detail about the song's meaning. Remember, he wants you to decipher things for yourself!
"Let Go" is a another standout and exceptional track on 3s, with Danielsen proclaiming that "it's a different sound for us, different than what we've done, and it's a fun song to play. It's about letting go of old ideas or beliefs or whatever, and letting go of the old to allow yourself to be reborn into something new."
It's apparent that with 3s, Smile Empty Soul tried three new things, too. They went darker, heavier and decided to let the songs tell the stories in more cryptic ways, so a whole other relationship to the number after which they've titled their album has shown itself.
Is three shaping up to be the band's lucky number? "It's never been my lucky number in the past, but if the record blows up, it'll be my new lucky number," Danielsen said.
With the craftmanship of the songs, the way they embed in the brain thanks to their hooky melodies and the pure passion (which you'll notice, are three key qualities that the band distilled into the album as whole), Threes blowing up seems an inevitable and mathematical certainty.