Founder members Will McGonagle and Joe Birch (previously of Symposium) were joined by James Findlay, Tom O'Donoghue and later Justin Schlosberg.
The Neon Handshake was produced and recorded in Los Angeles at Sound City Studios and mixed in Umeå, Sweden at Tonteknik by Pelle Henricsson and Eskil Lövström.
The band released its second album Transmit Disrupt independently, before signing a deal with Burning Heart Records, who subsequently re-released it in 2006.
Their final release was in 1999 and, by the end of 2000, due to personal and musical differences, and problems with their record label, they had split up.
[3] Before long they joined up with their former school friends, James Findlay and Tom O'Donoghue, to form what would become with Hell is for Heroes, but they still lacked a lead singer.
[7] Hell Is for Heroes' live appearances included the Carling Weekend Reading and Leeds Festival on the BBC Radio 1 stage.
However, in 2004, changes within EMI saw Chrysalis Records, which owned the rights to Hell Is for Heroes closed down, and another subsidiary subsequently decide to part company with the band.
brought the album to a wider audience and the band embarked upon a sponsored tour throughout June, playing the Barfly venues in the UK.
On 25 October 2007, Hell Is for Heroes stated: Our forthcoming hop around the UK will be our last full length stint on the road before the reunion tour in 2037.
In June 2012, the band announced that they will be supporting Hundred Reasons at their upcoming 10th Anniversary shows, playing The Neon Handshake in full along with other songs from their back catalogue.
Guitarist Will McGonagle commented on the upcoming shows, "We’ve been friends with Hundred Reasons for over 10 years, so when they suggested playing our first records together it sounded like fun.
[12] In August 2017, the band announced that they would be going on a headline tour in February 2018 playing The Neon Handshake in full to celebrate that record's 15th anniversary.
In 2021 the band announced a 9-date UK tour alongside Hundred Reasons, scheduled to take place in February and March 2022.