The only two constant members, vocalist Max Illidge and rhythm guitarist Joey D'Amico, first met each other during late 1997.

For eight hours straight, Crahan had the CD on repeat in his car while driving from Iowa to Los Angeles (where No Name was based).

[3] The band flew out to Los Angeles and showcased for Madonna's record label Maverick, which was part of Warner Music Group.

Richards tried to get Maverick to pay the band a significantly larger amount of money than they had originally asked for, with the label refusing.

"[3] In March 2001, 40 Below Summer travelled to Los Angeles again to commence recording their major label debut for London-Sire.

The band had never been to California prior to joining No Name, with D'Amico recalling in 2021, "the vibe there was very relaxed, and we're from New York, so we thought everybody there was weird, we're like 'why are they so nice?

[3] 40 Below Summer were given a recording budget of around 250,000 dollars, and made Invitation to the Dance with well-known rock and metal producer GGGarth (Rage Against the Machine, Mudvayne, Kittie).

He enjoyed what the band was doing, subsequently saying that one of the main things that made him want to work with 40 Below Summer was Max Illidge, who he found to be a charismatic frontman.

[3] GGGarth was originally from Vancouver, Canada, and had production gear from the city driven over to the studio where 40 Below Summer was recording.

"[3] As a result of their major label deal, the band had access to hundreds of thousands of dollars, which meant they were able to afford all the marijuana they were using.

Illidge says he remembers spending nights smoking marijuana with Stephen Carpenter from Deftones and B-Real from Cypress Hill.

[3] Wright didn't know of the band prior to taking on the project, and listened to their previous independent material in order to get a sense of their musical progression.

"[3] No conceptual music videos ended up being made to promote Invitation to the Dance, in part due to issues with the band's troubled label London-Sire.

Shortly before Invitation to the Dance was released, an electronic press kit for the album was also made, which shows the band members speaking to an actress playing a fortune teller.

"[7][3] He is shown holding tarot cards, with the artwork concept being conceived by the band members and executed by Los Angeles-based t42design.

[3] The album combines the downtuned riffs of nu metal/alternative metal with elements of New Jersey hardcore, hip hop, jazz and hard rock.

[3] The New York progressive band Candiria, which combined genres such as jazz, rap, R&B and metal, has been cited as a major influence by Illidge and D'Amico.

"[3] Max Illidge used techniques with his microphone to create natural tremolo effects on his voice, which can be heard on songs such as "Smile Electric".

[3] Illidge adds that his melodies were "inspired from strange places", saying that some of them were influenced by 1980s Britpop music as well as the band Queensrÿche.

[3] Illidge had a drum machine at his home studio and at a practice session the next day came to his band members with a nearly complete version of the song.

[3] Songs such as "Falling Down" and "Rejection" feature a volatile brand of singing which frequently alternates between melodic crooning, rapping and more extreme vocal stylings.

"[4] D'Amico said in 2021 that the changes in mood throughout songs such as "Falling Down" were inspired by The Smashing Pumpkins, who often had "dreamy" parts mixed with heavier moments.

[3] However, he notes that the band didn't intentionally set out to have contrasting soft parts in "Falling Down" when they first wrote the song.

[3] "Step into the Sideshow", "Falling Down", "Rejection" and "Jonesin" were all rerecorded songs that originally appeared on the band's independent releases Side Show Freaks (1999) and Rain (2000).

He concluded his review by writing "40 Below Summer's ability to keep the listener guessing and the album's repetitive appeal make Invitation to the Dance a surefire hit for those looking for something more out of hard rock than a down-tuned bass and simplistic lyrics.

Authier added, "don't get me wrong; this is a contemporary record that can hold its own in the company of bands like Slipknot and Korn, it just has that little something extra.

Maybe it is the worldly influences of Peruvian drummer Carlos Aguilar and Puerto Rican bassist Hector Graziani.