The band formed in 1998 in Pompano Beach, Florida after the breakup of the Christian hardcore band Strongarm. Strongarm guitarists Josh Colbert and Nick Dominguez, bassist Chad Neptune, and drummer Steve Kleisath recruited Vacant Andys vocalist Chris Carrabba to form Further Seems Forever. The first song the new band released was "Vengeance Factor" on the Deep Elm Records compilation "An Ocean of Doubt: The Emo Diaries, Chapter Four", which contributed to the band's association with the emo genre. Their first release was a split EP with fellow Floridians Recess Theory entitled "From the 27th State", released by Takehold Records, and soon the band had signed a recording contract with Seattle-based Christian label Tooth and Nail Records. By 2000, however, Carrabba had begun working on his own project Dashboard Confessional and recorded the album "The Swiss Army Romance", essentially a solo release which he considered too personal for Further Seems Forever. At this time the band struggled with interpersonal squabbles and difficulties touring, as Dominguez had a young family and was reluctant to tour outside the state. This forced the group to search for several fill-in guitarists to replace him on tour. After returning from a solo tour in August 2000 Carrabba announced that he was leaving the group in order to focus on Dashboard Confessional full-time: