The group reached critical and commercial success with their 1990s Epic Records releases October Project and Falling Farther In.

[5] The band spent eighteen months in Tritone's garage studio refining their instrumentation and arrangements, and occasionally changing their configuration.

[5] The band quickly earned a devoted following by playing regularly at many of the music clubs of downtown Manhattan, including the Speakeasy, the Sun Mountain Cafe, Beowulf, CB's 313 Gallery, and the Bitter End.

They soon took up residence at the original Café Sin-é on St. Mark's Place, where they often played alongside other developing artists of the time, most notably Jeff Buckley.

[8] The band toured throughout the US for much of 1994, opening for several acts, including the Crash Test Dummies and Sarah McLachlan, and appearing on Late Night with Conan O'Brien.

[9] After a nine-city promotional tour of Europe the band returned to Nashville in early 1995 to record their second album, Falling Farther In, produced by Peter Collins and engineered by David Leonard.

[10] A headlining tour of the US included additional players Julian Coryell (guitar), Kevin Jenkins (bass), and Craig Thatcher (drums).

Among the artists who opened for October Project on that tour were Joy Askew, Jane Kelly Williams, and Once Blue (composed of Jesse Harris and Rebecca Martin).

The members were Mary Anne Marino (lead vocals), Julie Flanders (keyboard/vocals), Emil Adler (keyboard/vocals), Rob Friedman (guitar), Mike Visceglia (bass), and Doug Yowell (drums).

[12] A full-length album, partially funded by fans through the band's web site,[13] and co-produced by Adler and guitarist Gerry Leonard, was completed prior to the team's dissolution.

In 2003, the band released Different Eyes, a six track EP featuring newly recorded songs that were originally written by Flanders and Adler in the 1990s.

[14] In June 2006, a tribute album, October Project Covered, was released, featuring sixteen independent artists performing songs by Flanders and Adler.

According to the band, the material is meant to be experienced as a preview to an upcoming full-length release, which will feature many of the same songs, but with full instrumentation and arrangements.

The album, which was published by Sounds True, features a specially selected choir and the voices of Flanders, Adler, and Belica.

A review by Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat called the effort an "uplifting collection" that "stir the soul and enchant the mind with their beauty and meaning".

In 2000, current lead vocalist Belica invited Flanders, Adler, Sabatino, and Sanchez to record a new version of October Project's first single, "Return to Me."