Despite the critical success and cult following generated by their first three albums, the band had yet to score a high-charting single and was prompted by their record label to work with a more mainstream producer.

After taking a more stripped-down approach to Home, the band was ready to try a new direction and recruited David Z., best known for his work with Prince and Fine Young Cannibals, to produce their next record.

Rafael "Danny" Gayol, their session drummer on the Home tour, provided drums on the album and subsequently became a full member of the band.

Nonetheless, it received mostly positive reviews and "Good Things", "True Devotion", "Paradise", and "Naked" all became staples in their live set.

It's a sound well suited to the lyrics on Black and White, which, though haunted by images of loneliness and desperation, are never devoid of courage or hope.