Lead singer and guitarist Chris "Gunner" McGrath and bassist Andy Simon started playing songs together with various people and bands beginning in 1997.
When McGrath decided to put out a local punk rock compilation entitled Fun With Dirt, he recruited SKG's drummer, Mike "Mook" Snoreck, to learn and record the song, and he joined immediately afterward.
Andy Simon later rejoined as a second guitarist in September 2000, only to leave again along with Mufich six months later, but not before recording the band's first CD, the Caught Off Guard EP.
Franky Tsoukalas and Matt Haraburda replaced them before the EP was released and their picture appears in the booklet despite the fact that they did not record the songs.
In 2001, it was at this point that the band decided they needed to change their name, leading to a rushed search for a new name commenced, producing largely unsatisfactory results.
In frustration, McGrath started searching through a thesaurus for any word or phrase that stood out, and "much the same" stuck out due to its appearance in the lyrics of his side band's song "Big Surprise."