The band formed in 2007, naming themselves after the suburb of Crookes in Sheffield, where guitarists Daniel Hopewell and Alex Saunders met before later recruiting George Waite on vocals and Russell Bates on drums.

[1] The Crookes were named as The Guardian Band of The Day in September 2009 being described as having "hints of the win some, lose some C86 brigade, The Smiths (say, circa The Boy With the Thorn in His Side), the plaintive jangle of the Housemartins, even Belle and Sebastian".

They immediately drafted in a replacement guitarist Tom Dakin, of Sheffield-based band Silent Film Project, to play on impending two month UK and European tour.

On 11 June 2013, the Crookes announced they had signed their first American recording contract with Austin-based indie label Modern Outsider, stating further that they would be releasing a special version of Hold Fast in America later in 2013 and be playing live dates there before the end of the year.

[10] In a July 2013 interview with Between the Earphones, Hopewell explained that the new songs the Crookes were writing sounded "far more confident than we've ever been... we're trying things that we would have never even considered before and I’m really pleased with the results.

"[11] On 20 August 2013, the Crookes wrote a Tumblr post revealing that they were in the middle of writing their third album, stating "it's going very well thank you," but were still looking for a place to record it.

The video features lead singer George Waite being forced to sit through a makeover, dressing him up "into something he could never be",[15] highlighting the band's reluctance to compromise for people who don't support them.

"We’ve always believed in taking a DIY approach to the music industry and the creation of Anywhere Records gives us a chance to put our stamp on something completely new; something we’ll have total control of," said Tom Dakin in the Press Release.

There is something almost subversive about their odd mix of influences (The Smiths/’60s girl groups/’50s rock and roll)... It’s the romance of the Seine, of walking in the Peaks; or lying on your back reading and daydreaming".

[19] Whilst publications have picked up on the narrative quality of the songs, describing early recordings as sounding like novels by Angry Young Men.