Courtney Barnett is an Australian singer/songwriter originally from Sydney, New South Wales, later moving to Hobart where she began performing music in 2008 before relocating to Melbourne in 2010. Barnett was originally a part of several bands, including Immigrant Union and The Olivettes before focusing on her solo work. In 2012, Courtney started her own record label, Milk! Records, and recorded her debut EP "I've Got A Friend Called Emily Ferris" in a friend's lounge room and released it later that year. Late 2012 also saw the release of a new single, "History Eraser," which was backed with Jen Cloher's "Mount Beauty" for a split seven-inch release.

In 2013, Barnett released her second EP, How to Carve a Carrot Into a Rose. Along with "History Eraser," the EP spawned a second single, "Avant Gardener".

Barnett would later combine these two releases into one for The Double EP: A Sea Of Split Peas, which was released internationally on 20 May 2013 via House Anxiety/Marathon Artists. It was named the album of the week by Stereogum.