Have Mercy began in late 2009 after drummer Aaron Alt and guitarist Joey McCusker decided to disembark from their previous band. Looking for something different, following their formative years in the metal scene, they contacted long time friend Brian Swindle to head the group. Since then, they have released three albums, two EPs, and two splits. Their debut album, titled The Earth Pushed Back, was released in 2013 via Topshelf Records.[1][2][3] Their second album, titled A Place of Our Own, was released in 2014 via Hopeless Records.[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12] They released their third album Make the Best of It on Hopeless Records on April 21, 2017.
On March 12, 2019, lead singer Brian Swindle announced that founding member and former drummer Aaron Alt had died. On December 18, 2019, the band announced their last tour via their social media accounts. Before the tour’s end, however, many of its dates had to be postponed due to COVID-19. As the pandemic continued, the band found it difficult to schedule what would have been their final shows.
On January 2, 2022, the band teased a new EP via Instagram with a studio photo featuring frontman Brian Swindle former members Andrew Johnson, Todd Wallace, and Nick Woolford. On August 26, 2022, Have Mercy released a self-titled EP containing seven new songs.
In August 2023, from the 10th to the 13th, they played four shows across four states as a reunion and 10 year celebration of their first album. That December, the band released their fifth album, NUMB, via Rude Records.
