illScarlett was formed by drummer Swavek Piorkowski and singer/guitarist Alex Norman, who met while attending Iona Catholic Secondary School in the Clarkson area of Mississauga, Ontario. Around the same time, Norman was working at a skateboarding shop at the local mall. Norman approached a customer named Daniel Krolikowski after mistaking Krolikowski for bassist Jason "Cone" McCaslin of the popular band Sum 41; despite the mistaken identity, Norman discovered that Krolikowski also played bass guitar. The two became friends and thereafter began jamming with Piorkowski as a trio.
