The band began as an informal busking collective, playing every Tuesday in Montreal's Lucien-L'Allier metro station.
[1] After about seven or eight months, they booked a rehearsal space and began to actively record and perform as a permanent band.
Their debut album Broken Trucks and Bottles was released in April 2005 and featured Sean Moore on banjo, mandolin and guitar.
Shortly after the album's release Moore left the band and was replaced by Kevin McNeilly, while session man Roger Dawson also became a member.
[2] That same year, a Montreal Mirror readers' poll voted them the third best act in the city, behind only Arcade Fire and electronic duo Team Canada.