Getting its start by selling CDs in a small music store, the four members of metal rock group Godsmack have been earning their keep the respectable way.

Composed of lead vocalist Sully Erna, guitarist Tony Rombola, bassist Robbie Merrill and drummer Tommy Stewart, the band self-released its first CD in 1996.

Borrowing $2,500 from a friend to record the album, Godsmack’s self-titled release does not have the sound or look of a low budget project.

Recorded at Boston’s New Alliance Studios, the album is a no-nonsense compilation of hard hitting guitar riffs and growling lyrics.

“We did it ourselves,” Rombola told Guitar Magazine. “We pretty much did all the basic tracks in two days. The whole thing, including vocals and mixing and mastering was done in two weeks. A little bit of tweaking can go a long way.”

With the album completed, Godsmack began searching for stores to sell its album.

Contacting numerous places in the Boston area, the band encountered a problem — it was unable to find any stores willing to sell its album.

After more searching, the group began selling its album to music store Newberry Comics, the only place that agreed to carry the project.

Selling the album on consignment, Godsmack began playing local club shows regularly around Boston. Soon the band drew the attention of Paul Geary, a long time friend of Erna’s and former manager and drummer of the group Extreme, who signed the band to his management company PGE.

Continued exposure continued for Godsmack, with a local disc jockey at WAAF radio in Boston embracing the track “Keep Away” and incorporating the song into his weekly program.

Airplay continued to increase dramatically for Godsmack with several stations embracing the bands first official blistering single, “Whatever.”

Record sales of the album soared at Newbury Comics with the album becoming the store’s number two all-time seller.

Before forming Godsmack, Erna played drums in another band that broke up in 1994.

After taking a year off from music, he began writing music and continued drumming. Teaming up with good friend and bassist Merrill, the two began jamming and looking for members to complete the band.

After trying out numerous lead vocalists, Erna and Merrill were left disappointed, with no one seeming to suit the duo’s hard-hitting style.

“Everyone that we were trying out to sing was doing that high register voice,” Erna told Rolling Stone. “I wasn’t down with that, so I gave it a crack. At first, they laughed at me.”

With Erna at vocals, the search began for a drummer as well as a guitarist. After acquiring drummer Stewart and local guitarist Lee Richards, the foursome began jamming. A few months later, both Richards and Stewart left the band, leaving Erna and Merrill back at square one.

Current guitarist Rombola slipped into the guitar slot. After changing several different drummers, the band invited earlier drum tryout Tommy Stewart to join the band. The group meshed quickly and began writing original songs.

Godsmack’s sound is described by Rolling Stone as smacking somewhere between the steely thrash of Metallica and the crunch of Alice in Chains (whose track “Godsmack” gave the band its name).

“I definitely loved Metallica,” Erna told Rolling Stone. “Now they’re doing Bob Seger covers — I don’t know what to think.”

Godsmack’s hard-hitting riffs and Erna’s powerful vocals have not gone unnoticed. The group recently reached number nine on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart with “Whatever.”

Recorded at Boston’s new Alliance Studios under Republic Records, Godsmack’s debut album is a no-frills, no-nonsense dose of hard rock, which, despite its low budget, has the sound of a professional recording.

Merrill commented to GuitarOne Magazine about Godsmack’s hard work ethic, which he attributes to the groups continuing success:

“Just from working hard and playing a lot of shows, keeping our mailing list going and keeping in contact with our fans,” he said. “We have slowly been building up a strong fan base.”

Godsmack will be bringing its hard rocking show to Supertoad in Des Moines Saturday at 7 p.m. Tickets are $6.