Larusso

In the winter of 2004, Larusso - Sam Sorensen vocals, guitar; John Condrat guitar; Sheyn Love bass; and Nate Simmons drums - rose from the ashes of a previous project fallen apart. With a fresh start for these four men, and a high anticipation from Salt Lake City local music scene, Larusso immediately began writing, recording, and playing local shows.
The first result, a self-titled EP filled with angst, honesty, and a new edge the boys in Larusso had never before experienced. Around the time of the release, John had mentioned that his close friend and brother, Aaron, was looking for a new project to take part in. From there, Sam opted to strictly take on the vocal duties and let Aaron become part of this Larusso band family.
Larusso played shows all over the Salt Lake Valley for the next year, until it came time for Simmons to leave the band to fulfill a missionary position for his church. The search for a permanent replacement and new best friend was tough on Larusso, leaving them to take on part-time drummer, singer for Salt Lake City local band, Three%Hero, and close friend, Jimmie Smeath. Larusso was back on their feet playing more local shows, though it still proved to be tough for the band due to Smeath being dedicated to his full-time band, Three%Hero. But Larusso played on, making more and more fans every show, and impressing everyone who crossed their path. Later that year, in the fall of 2005, Love brashly quit the band to join Salt Lake City locals, Allred. Again, Larusso was left in uncertainty. With a slew of shows booked through the end of the year and into 2006, Larusso had to quickly find a bass player. They took on Jimmie's little brother and Three%Hero guitarist, Phil Smeath, to fill-in and help Larusso get through oncoming months.
Before joining, the Smeath brothers both made it clear that they could not dedicate to Larusso full-time and that eventually, they must return to play only in Three%Hero. In those months, Larusso wrote and recorded their new full-length record, "A World Behind The Mask." A record filled with poppy tunes about loss, pain, love, and ultimately growing up. During the process, the Smeaths made it clear that they could not fully dedicate themselves to this project. Larusso quickly set up tryouts for bass players and drummers. With only a few submissions, Larusso came across Ronald Prince, a long time fan of the band. He joined the ranks in February of 2006, just in time for some of Larusso's biggest shows to date. One being the CD release show of their new full-length record. The other show being headlining-support for legendary punks, MxPx.