Appearing amid the fertile screamo scene of the 2000s, the Las Vegas quintet Escape the Fate prided itself, above all else, on an energetic and visceral live show. The band's formation was propelled in part by /MySpace, which vocalist Ronnie Radke and bass player Max Green utilized during searching for new bandmembers after their previous group's demise. The networking site allowed them to recruit guitar player Bryan Money, who subsequently brought along Vegas transplant (and former Lovehatehero guitarist) Omar Espinoza. Drummer Robert Ortiz joined thereafter to complete the lineup. Debuting live barely one month later, the guys found early success via local radio outlets and quickly amassed a devoted hometown following.

By September 2005, Escape the Fate had won a local radio contest judged by My Chemical Romance. The gig awarded them the opportunity to open a show on the band's headlining tour with Alkaline threesome and Reggie and the Full Effect, which subsequently led to Escape the Fate's record deal with Epitaph. Their debut five-song EP, There's No Sympathy for the Dead, appeared in May 2006. Tour dates came throughout the summer months, but the lineup took a hiatus from the road several weeks before the September release of Dying Is Your Latest Fashion, citing personal issues. The album fared well, however, and the lineup resumed performing soon after. guitarist Espinoza amicably left the band in 2007, and Ronnie Radke was ousted one year later due to continued drug problems and one charge of battery (which indirectly resulted in the death of an 18-year-old boy). Escape the Fate recruited former blessthefall singer Craig Mabbitt to fill the vacant frontman position, and the revised band immediately hit the studio in mid-2008 to record a sequel record. This War Is Ours was issued that October and debuted at number 35 on the Billboard charts.