Dallas Crane formed in 1996 in Melbourne by Chris Brodie on bass guitar, Dave Larkin on lead vocals and guitar, Pete Satchell on guitar and vocals and Shan Vanderwert on drums. Satchell and Larkin were former school mates and Brodie and Vanderwert joined soon after. They rehearsed material for their debut album, "Lent" (1998), in a Port Melbourne oil shed on the property of Dallas Crane Transport. The local trucking company was owned by friends: their rehearsals were paid for in beer, and the group were renamed, Dallas Crane.