After signing with the label, Max Bemis began writing songs for his band's Doghouse debut. With tremendous self-created pressure, he threw himself into pushing the sonic boundaries of the band and maturing their sound, incorporating elements of math-rock, indie-pop and theatrical pomp. He and Linder also started the search for a producer. The two met several producers but eventually decided on Tim O'Heir and Stephen Trask. Bemis struggled with different ideas for the record and decided the album should focus on "the artistic struggle, the fact that every creative person has this sick ambition to affect some sort of change in society with their art, to be more than just a guy in a band or a poet or a sculptor."

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"IS A REAL BOY 20th ANNIVERSARY" 3XLP - 20th Anniversary 3xLP colored vinyl with 11 original demo tracks recorded with Forrest Kline of HELLOGOODBYE. 14 song Digital release includes 11 song demo version of "Is A Real Boy" plus for the first time released digitally the song "But A Fleeting Illness", "Spider Song" (Paul Trust version) and "Belt" acoustic. Triple vinyl LP pressing.