Originating from Los Gatos, California, USA, this nu-metal outfit was formed by Chris Brown (vocals/guitar) and Peter Charell (bass) in the mid-90s, when they began playing hard rock covers in high school bands. Lead guitarist Simon Ormandy was welcomed to the group, and by the latter part of 1997 Trapt had issued a home recorded CD. The following year members of Trapt graduated from high school, which resulted in more even more attention put towards their band.
Another self-issued CD followed, Amalgamation, and despite its members enrolling in college, Trapt remained together, and even issued a third recording on their own, Glimpse. The band members finally made the decision to drop out of school and concentrate on their music career, relocating to Los Angeles and adding drummer Aaron Montgomery to the line-up. In late 2001, the new look quartet signed a recording contract with Warner Brothers Records. They issued their generic major label debut in 2002, produced by Rage Against The Machine’s Garth Richardson.