At the beginning of the 2000's, Rilo Kiley was a fiercely independent band, having released an EP under their own Rilo Records label. But, even with only very minimal touring outside of southern California, their brilliant live show and excellent songcraft started to attract a fair amount of national attention in publications like Harper's Bazaar and Rolling Stone, and even some airplay on MTV. The band initially self-released Take Offs and Landings before signing to Barsuk, who promptly reissued the album.
