[1] In between various tours supporting it, the members had alternative jobs: bassist Garth Petrie was a mover; drummer Eric Kane cooked in different cafés; guitarist Matt Smith ran a recording studio in his basement; guitarist Matt Sherwood served as an electrical engineer; and vocalist Thomas Barnett worked in markets and health food stores.

[10] Barnett's notebooks, which contained lyrics and song ideas, were stolen from his car shortly before recording, prompting the rest of the members to aid in the writing.

[11] Barnett said the album was based on local stories, like Change Is a Sound, the that it is "at once 10 times more [about their hometown] Richmond, about secret histories, slave insurrections, women riots pointing guns at their husbands and brothers, the Confederate army burning the city.

[7][8] "Blaze" features Barnett quoting lines from Percy Bysshe Shelley's poem The Masque of Anarchy.

[5][25] In February and March 2004, the band went on an US tour with Fifth Hour Hero; F-Minus and Silverstein appeared on select dates.

[26] Following this, the band headlined the Jade Tre United Tour, which occurred in the Midwest and East Coast, and featured From Ashes Rise, Challenger, Paint It Black, and Breather Resist.

AllMusic reviewer Charles Spano wrote that the album was "as fun as it is serious -- equal parts pogo punk and agitprop anti-authoritarianism."

"[12] The Boston Phoenix writer Sean Richardson said for a punk act with a "strident anti-corporate agenda, Strike Anywhere are intent on keeping their lyrics positive and their music upbeat".

[14] Punknews.org staff member Brian Shultz wrote that Exist English had a "more complete sound" than their debut, with Strike Anywhere showing that they "have lit the match and have already set it ablaze.

[35] Ox-Fanzine reviewer Joachim Hiller called Exist English "a rousing, mature album", full of "rousing hardcore" that "extends the known old school elements here more than before with newer elements, sometimes only stopping a hand's breadth in front of screamo colleagues like Thrice and Co."[6] Rock Hard writer Jan Jaedike said Exist English had a handful of "really fine hooks [that] fall off without neglecting the aggro portion.

"[34] Now contributor Dylan Young wrote that the album consisted of "a tight blend of strident rhythms, scattershot drums, casual chatter and laryngitis-inducing wails."