The week that guitarists Grace Repasky and Maggie Geeslin turned old enough to drive, Lunar Vacation was officially formed. Upon high school's end, Lunar Vacation released a pair of well-received EPs, Swell and Artificial Flavors, and landed support runs for the likes of Remo Drive, Sidney Gish, and SALES. The band nabbed infatuated fans across the US while racking up millions of streams on their independently released music. In more than one sense, Lunar Vacation had graduated. Back in Atlanta, Geeslin was working in a record store (Criminal Records) when Daniel Gleason of the band Grouplove came in. Following a quick connection and hours of conversation, the members of Lunar Vacation felt Gleason could be one to color in the sound they'd been honing live - melodious guitars swirling atop propulsive, often psychedelic rhythm - and capture it in the studio. The band recorded "Unlucky" with Gleason and released it in early 2020, the song drawing attention as "swoon-worthy" from The FADER, "shimmering . wistful, sun-kissed indie-pop" from American Songwriter, and "equal parts Mac DeMarco and Snail Mail" from Paste Magazine. Lunar Vacation continued recording with Gleason in the producer's chair. The band released the first song of the batch in June 2021. "Shrug" garnered praise from the likes of Paste, Brooklyn Vegan, Stereogum, Under The Radar, and NYLON who called it "a jangly guitar song with a very shoutable chorus." Songwriter Repasky shared, "I look back now and realize that this song was a pivotal moment in delving into self-identity and ultimately identifying as a non-binary person." The melody is buoyant though agitated, its guitars warbling like question marks and lyrics ringing distinctly relatable. Lines like This isn't how I want to be / I didn't know I could care that much and Invited but I'll never show / Sit at home playing too much Wilco cut into a listener's mind and vibrate there, like thoughts of one's own. There's a carefree sense of triumph in Repasky's refrain: Why don't you just shrug it off? Repasky suggested the band name Lunar Vacation to Geeslin at a show, leaning over at a loud moment to say it. It's easy to imagine others finding out about the band in this same way.