tj kong and the atomic bomb was founded by songwriter dan bruskewicz and drummer dan martino in march 2008, after the pair began working at the same restaurant in central philadelphia. at that time, martino (formerly of punk band our time) ran a house show venue in philadelphia called the blue room, which was the group's initial practice and performance space. the band's name references the film "dr. strangelove", and was initially used by bruskewicz as a moniker for his solo material prior to meeting martino. bruskewicz also performed in the band's early years as a busker in philadelphia's suburban station. they played initially as a duo, but put up ads on craigslist for additional members; through this site they found josh willis, who played bass and banjo with the group from early 2009 to mid-2010. less than a year after its formation, the band self-released its debut ep, "the hinterlands", and in the fall of 2009 they played the pop montreal festival. kevin conner was added as a guitarist in early 2010. the band's debut full-length, "idiots", was released in may 2010 by the four-piece.