Originally a side project for the Grifters' Dave Shouse, Those Bastard Souls formed in 1996 with the release of Twentieth Century Chemical. The album was basically a Shouse solo project, but when he was approached by Sebadoh with an opening spot on their tour, he connected with the Dambuilders' Joan Wasser and former Red Red Meat bassist Matt Fields to flesh out the Souls for the road. As Wasser's and Shouse's main groups broke up (in the case of the Dambuilders) or went on hiatus (in the case of the Grifters), Those Bastard Souls evolved into a full-fledged band. The original trio added another ex-Dambuilder, drummer Kevin March, and former Jeff Buckley guitarist Michael Tighe to the lineup for the recording of their V2 debut, 1999's Debt & Departure.