The heavy, pinch-hitting post-grunge sound of Paint It Black came together in the middle-class neighborhoods of Philly in 2000. Lifetime guitarist Dan Yemin, aka Kid Dynamite, sought a different musical direction than his previous projects. With longtime friend and Good Riddance drummer David Wagenschutz, guitarist Dave Hause, and bass player Andy Nelson, he formed Paint It Black. Jade Tree came calling with a deal in 2002, and the band's debut album, CVA, followed the next summer. Hause left to form the Loved Ones in late 2003; Paint It Black's sophomore effort, Paradise, appeared in March 2005. Not unfamiliar with lineup changes, by 2006 the band comprised Yemin, Wagenschutz, bassist Andrew Mackie, and guitarist Joshua Agran. Wagenschutz, however, amicably parted ways with the group that summer, playing his final Paint It Black show in late July. None More Black drummer Jared Shavelson filled in for their subsequent European tour with New Mexican Disaster Squad as a permanent replacement was sought. Shavelson eventually joined Paint It Black permanently. The group released New Lexicon on Jade Tree Records in February 2008.