The members of the Early November were young enough to have grown up with the Drive-Thru Records sound, a formula that incorporated sensitive emo, pop, and punk revivalist amalgams with a bit of post-hardcore grit. The band first emerged in 2000, fighting to secure shows in their busy South Jersey scene while hoping to land a deal with Drive-Thru. One way or another, their wish came true. Label figureheads Richard and Stefanie Reines signed vocalist/guitarist "Ace" (Arthur) Enders, bassist Sergio Anello, drummer Jeff Kummer, and guitarist Joseph Marro in early 2002 on the strengths of their demo and a solid MP3.com buzz, and by November 2002 the band had made its label debut with the For All of This EP. Promising appearances on the Warped Tour's Drive-Thru stage that summer spread the word, and by 2003, anticipation for an Early November full-length was brimming.

Room's Too Cold dropped in October 2003. It was a particularly lush take on the Drive-Thru sound, with strings and ballads and a focus on the rich vocal presence of Enders. The band toured extensively behind the record; Enders later issued the first effort from his solo project I Can Make a Mess Like Nobody's Business in late 2004 and briefly toured behind the disc. Enders then turned back to the Early November, and writing began that summer for their follow-up sophomore release. Recording commenced in February 2005 with a fifth member on board, guitarist Bill Lugg. The band also released a summer split EP with I Am the Avalanche, Vinnie Caruana's post-Movielife project. The resulting The Mother, the Mechanic, and the Path was eventually issued in July 2006 as an ambitious triple album. (The band took a cut in royalties to make sure it was offered at a single-disc price.) Boasting a rock-oriented disc ("The Mechanic"), a more mellow, stripped-down disc ("The Mother"), and a third character-based soundtrack with dialogue to intermingle among the first two ("The Path"), the album was conceptually based around a troubled father-son relationship and the subsequent imperfect relationship between the then-adult son and his own child. Various rounds of touring followed. In March 2007, however, the band members announced their plans to go on an indefinite hiatus after the completion of scheduled dates that year. In November of 2011 the band announced their reunion and signing to Rise Records. The band will release a new record in 2012.