After recording and touring incessantly from 1995 until 2001, the quintet opted to take some time off for 2002 and most of 2003. It was the first long-term hiatus for the band since their inception. Upon returning to the recording studio to begin recording what would become "Everything to Everyone", BNL adopted a new policy of keeping the writing exclusively within the band members. This resulted in increased contribution from Jim Creeggan and Kevin Hearn, and the band ended up recording more songs than usual (which in turn resulted in a 14-song album plus a bonus track). The album was recorded in Los Angeles, and was the first album the band recorded following the inception of their online blog. This allowed the band to communicate with their fans on a continual basis during the recording, and gave additional insight into the creative process.