In 2007 San Francisco-based singer-songwriter, artist, and film director Sonny Smith formed the band Sonny & the Sunsets, a loose collective of friends including Shayde Sartin & Tim Cohen of The Fresh & Onlys, Sub Pop recording artist Kelley Stoltz, Ryan Browne, and Tahlia Harbour of Citay and The Dry Spells. The band recorded their debut LP, Tomorrow Is Alright, in various apartments in the Mission District in 2007 and 2008. In early 2009, shortly after the release of the band's debut 7" single Love & Death, Sonny Smith completed a songwriting residency at Marin Headlands.