Alkaline Trio's legacy harkens back to 1997, when Matt Skiba, a bike messenger from working class Chicago suburb McHenry, gave up the drums for the guitar and began his quest for the perfect balance of lyrical hell and pop heaven. The group's first two albums, Goddamnit and Maybe I'll Catch Fire, were issued on Indie Asian Man Records in 1998 and 2000 respectively, punctuated by years of hard touring. 2001's From Here To Infirmary marked the Alkaline Trio's Vagrant Records debut and produced the instant classics "Private Eye" and "Stupid Kid."
