He and Ek were dissatisfied with the results, so Martsch brought in bassist Brett Nelson and drummer Scott Plouf and recorded the album again.

Martsch wrote the album as a result of his distaste of grunge music such as Nirvana, making the songs long and unconventional on purpose in order to prevent them from being played on the radio.

Martsch wanted Built to Spill's popularity to spread organically through word-of-mouth rather than being promoted heavily.

[5] Despite the length of the album's songs, Martsch rejected comparisons to progressive rock, stating that he listened to Thinking Fellers Union Local 282 instead.

Perfect from Now On was Built to Spill's first album released on Warner Bros. Records, which Martsch signed with because they offered health insurance to his family, including his newborn son at the time.

[5] Perfect from Now On was released to widespread critical acclaim and is widely regarded as an indie rock masterpiece as well as Built to Spill's magnum opus.