Taking cues from Muse, Coldplay, and even the Bravery, Seattle alt-rock outfit the Myriad began with university students Jeremy Edwardson and John Roger Schofield. Determined to start a band in which all members had equal artistic input, the duo recruited Randy Miller, Jonathan Young, and Steven Tracy to join them in the endeavor. Their debut album, You Can't Trust a Ladder, was released in 2005 and chosen as a Staff Favorite on iTunes. The Myriad's biggest boost came in December 2007, when the band won MTV2's Dew Circuit Breakout competition. Their video for "A Clear Shot" began rotation on the network in January 2008, the same year that their second album, With Arrows, with Poise, was released on Koch Records.