Gratitude was formed in 2003 by Mark Weinberg (originally of the band Crumb) and Thomas Becker (originally of the Get Up Kids). Initially called the Collision, the band was joined by Bob Lindsey on bass and Robby Cronholm (also formerly of Crumb) on vocals. After touring in 2002 with New End Original, which featured Far alum Jonah Matranga and Jeremy Tappero, Cronholm left the band and was replaced by Matranga. When Matranga joined, the band changed their name from the Collision to Gratitude. After picking up Matranga and changing their name, Gratitude signed to Atlantic Records. The group picked up Tappero as second guitarist before going into the studio. After Becker left the band in the middle of recording the record, Drummer David Jarnstrom joined the band before the release of their self-titled debut album (Becker and other session musicians fulfilled the drum role during the recording of the album). Atlantic Records released Gratitude on March 8, 2005. The tracks Drive Away and This Is the Part, were released as singles and received significant radio play both in the US and the UK. Gratitude's first tour for the album was a North American tour supporting Jimmy Eat World (to whom the band has often been compared), and they were also on the bill for the 2005 Warped Tour and a leg of the 2005 Taste of Chaos.

The band faced many difficulties after their album's release—the commercial response was somewhat poor, and Weinberg left the band in June for personal reasons, thus forcing Gratitude to continue touring as a four-piece. Many show cancellations throughout the second half of 2005 and rumors of the band being dropped by Atlantic put the future of the band at stake. Eventually Gratitude released a statement on November 25, 2005 claiming that they had in fact decided to split after playing one final show at the Ascot Room in Minneapolis two days earlier.