Howling Bells began writing material for "The Loudest Engine" in mid–2009, and expressed hope that 2010 would see the release of the album, but it did not. Juanita labelled the band's new writing as "real organic, real jammy ... very melodic, but very raw." They played new material during their December 2009 Australian tour. One critic described it as "a more rollicking, rock and roll approach." In 2010, the band severed its partnership with Independiente and later negotiated a contract agreement with Cooking Vinyl.