bryan carlstrom produced their self-titled debut. he had engineered albums by multi-platinum outfits the offspring and alice in chains as well as producing labelmates stavesacre . schwab drew upon personal struggles he was experiencing at the time to write meaningful lyrics. sonny sandoval, lead singer of nu metal group p.o.d., appeared as a guest performer. the album was released in june 1998 and was well received. it sold over 50,000 copies to date and gained mainstream exposure on mtv shows "road rules" and "the real world". "project 86" was observed by allmusic to be the "most daring album at the time for its genre". the success of their debut made project 86 a top seller for bec/tooth and nail. the band embarked on a pioneering tour called "the warriors come out and play tour" in may 1999 with friends p.o.d. and blindside as the middle slot, which drew crowds of 600-1000 across the nation.