Thousand Below was quietly formed in 2016 by vocalist James Deberg, who continued to write music after parting ways with his previous band Outlands.

Josh Thomas, guitarist and friend of Deberg, showed him some songs he was working on at the time and the two decided to collaborate.

After recruiting other friends and musicians in the area - Josh Billimoria on bass, Devin Chance on guitar, and Garrett Halvax on drums - the band's initial lineup fell into place and they hit the studio to begin recording what would be their debut album, The Love You Let Too Close (2017).

After Rise offered them a deal, the band finished the album and publicly debuted in January 2017 with their first single and music video titled "Tradition"[2][3][4] off of The Love You Let Too Close.

Deberg, Thomas, and Billimoria hit the studio in January 2019 to begin recording their sophomore album, Gone In Your Wake (2019).

[15][16] In the summer of 2019, the band went on tour with Miss May I,[17][18][19][20] The Word Alive and Afterlife, and brought on Santoro as their new full-time drummer.

In September and October 2019, Thousand Below toured the United States and Canada with Of Mice & Men,[23][24][25] For The Fallen Dreams, and Bloodbather.

[36][37] According to AllMusic, the band utilizes "emotionally charged lyrics, melodic riffage, and combustible breakdowns with the dynamic atmospherics of post-rock.