They had all played in various punk and hardcore outfits over the years -- Paley and Meilleur most notably in River City Rebels -- but upon teaming up with Marie Whiteford (keyboards) as sophomores in college, they looked to do something new. Sounding nothing like the Misfits' album of the same name, the Static Age took influence from the Cure, New Order, and the Police to derive their own darkly melodic post-punk blend, complete with electro touches and Paley's worn voice singing often socially conscious lyrics. They began playing shows around their hometown of Burlington, VT, in 2002, and after being together less than six months, self-released a full-length demo, The Cost of Living, which quickly sold out of its first pressing. Picked up by a Boston-based indie, the demo went on to sell over 2,000 more copies, sufficiently starting a buzz around New England and finding the band opening for acts like Hot Hot Heat and Interpol. The quartet was even handpicked by AFI to open their Canadian tour.

Somewhere along the way, Whiteford was swapped out for Sarah Rose-Cameron on keyboards, and after various other recordings (including The Past and Now, a single recorded with Converge's Kurt Ballou), the Static Age's proper debut, Neon Nights Electric Lives, surfaced for a tour-only release in late 2004; it saw a fully distributed release via Tarantulas Records (partially owned by members of the Explosion) in early 2005. Hackney resigned from his post while the band was still on the road in the last half of 2005, but luckily, Say Anything's Coby Linder was able to fill in behind the drum kit on multiple tours as the Static Age looked for a permanent replacement. They finally found one in Tim Alek Mulley, who joined up in time for the album Blank Screens, which was released to positive reviews in September 2006 through ReIgnition Recordings. ~ Corey Apar