The Henry Clay People formed in 2002 as Vallejo by Knife. After some lineup changes they officially changed their name to The Henry Clay People in 2005, after which they’ve played hundreds of shows, have toured the United States multiple times, and have performed at Lollapalooza, SXSW, Austin City Limits Festival, and Sasquatch Music Festival.

Their album Blacklist the Kid with the Red Moustache was recorded in Portland and Montreal in 2006 by Colin Stewart and Howard Bilerman and was self released in 2007. Their next album For Cheap or For Free was recorded in 2008 in Los Angeles by Dave Newton and Joe Napolitano and released in November 2008 on Autumn Tone Records, an indie label started by the music blog Aquarium Drunkard.