In 1998 the group released their third album, Frame & Canvas, to critical acclaim and is considered a staple of the late 1990s emo movement.

Nanna, Bell, and Atkinson formed the more melodic Hey Mercedes, while Broach would dedicate more time to The Firebird Band which was previously a side project.

As Friction prepared to record their first album, Nanna left for college at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and was soon looking for another band as a side project.

Nanna met drummer Roy Ewing when he placed an ad in Maximumrocknroll, looking for someone to trade live concert tapes with.

[7] Around this time the rest of the band decided to fire Havranek, citing creative differences, so Broach was moved guitar and second vocals.

With a huge backlog of written material, Braid continued to write and record songs for various compilation appearances and 7-inch releases.

They played traditional venues, such as bars and clubs, but also booked shows in the homes of fans and VFW halls.

The album was released by Polyvinyl Records in April 1998, receiving critical acclaim and brought Braid greater exposure, eventually being regarded as one of the most influential bands of the 1990s emo movement.

[8] After returning to the United States, Atkinson, Bell, and Nanna set off to play Krazy Fest in Louisville, Kentucky, while Broach chose to make the drive separately.

[8] Broach was late for their set, and though Braid were allowed to play the following day, this caused more conflict amongst the band members.

[8] Soon after, Braid began work on a demo for a potential new record, but tensions surfaced by the time they finished mixing the last song of the session.

They scheduled one show in Milwaukee, two in Chicago at The Metro, and the final concert was held in their home town of Champaign where Roy Ewing played a few songs with the band.

Shortly after Braid's break up, Nanna, Bell, and Atkinson reunited to form the pop rock band Hey Mercedes with Mark Dawursk on guitar.

Chris Broach worked with his brother Riley in The Firebird Band, previously a side-project, and in 2001 he would also play with L'Spaerow and start Lucid Records.

[14] On May 4, 2011, the band announced their first comeback show since 2004 at the Metro on August 27, 2011[15] and would also play at Pygmalion Music Festival on September 24, 2011, part of the Polyvinyl Records fifteenth anniversary celebration.

Though they did not formally disband again, the band went inactive until February 2023 when they announced a 25th-anniversary remaster of Frame & Canvas and an accompanying U.S. tour with the album being played in full, mostly taking place in September.

[29] Braid have cited numerous bands as influences, including Gauge, Shudder to Think,[30] Fugazi, Jawbreaker, Jawbox, Samiam, Hoover, and Indian Summer.