Less Than Jake - 2011 Greetings From Less Than Jake

Band : Less Than Jake

Album : Greetings From Less Than Jake

Release Year : 2011

Genre : Ska | Punk

Tracklist :

01. Can’t Yell Any Louder
02. Goodbye, Mr. Personality
03. Harvey Wallbanger
04. Oldest Trick In The Book
05. Life Led Out Loud

Just in time for their stint on the main stage of the 2011 Vans Warped Tour, Less Than Jake has returned with a five-song EP, Greetings From..., their first release of new material since 2008's GNV FLA, and all five tracks embody the classic Less Than Jake sound, without rehashing anything old.

The EP opens with "Can't Yell Any Louder," an upbeat blast of horns and punk rock energy that is carried by the smart songwriting and singalong chorus that have made this band a longtime frontrunner in the world of ska punk. It then slips into the ska groove of "Goodbye, Mr. Personality," a mild slap at people who are merely annoying and not really worth anyone's time.

"Hello Harvey Wallbanger" is a stomping punk rock drinking tune that would be perfect on a jukebox in one of your finer punk rock drinking establishments, and the reggae groove of "Oldest Trick In The Book, is a smooth tune with the introspective lyrics that Less Than Jake has made their forte. With it's chorus of "All I know, I'll change the world before I go," it's the sort of inspirational song that makes for good late night listening while wondering what exactly comes next in life.
The EP wraps up with "Life Out Loud," ending on an upbeat high note with pure punk rock energy.

In five tracks and about15 minutes, the band carries you through all the sounds they've embraced over the years, from smooth sing-alongs to upbeat skank-alongs to fast stomp-alongs. It would be great intro to a band that was brand new, and it's an even better check-in from a band that's been around and on top for years. A release on the band's own label, Sleep It Off Records, Greetings From... is a move toward an artist-released business model where all profits made from its sale return directly to the band.

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Less Than Jake - 2003 Live From The Santa Monica Apple Store

Band : Less Than Jake

Album : Live From The Santa Monica Apple Store

Release Year : 2003

Genre : Ska / Punk

Tracklist :

1. Suburban Myth
2. The Ghosts of You and Me
3. History of a boring town
4. Welcome to the New South

Ah. The Apple iTunes Music Store releases an exclusive EP that I want. Bastards. My love/hate relationship with Apple grows everyday, and this just adds to the love. Less Than Jake has been a perennial favorite of mine for going on 8 years now. Through the good times and bad, they have consistently put out quality releases (although Anthem...) and are still one of my favorite shows to see. So getting a chance to hear Roger and Chris dualing guitars unplugged was a chance that I was willing to pay for.

Since there are only four tracks, I figured I'd do it track-by-track to make things easier:
1. Suburban Myth - Dual guitars sound good, really good honestly. Chris's voice is more on than it is normally. The upbeat rhythm sounds really good on acoustic. Roger carries his parts really well.

2. The Ghosts of You and Me - The best track on here. Not only is it probably the best track off of Anthem, but they really nail it here. A little bit of echo on the mic helps this I think. Roger actually sounds better on this recording, because his voice is tweaked several steps higher by pro-tools this time around. Although his voice does crack at one point, it only adds to what is one of their more "emotive" songs. The breakdowns that are in the song just prior to the chorus are lessened in this recording, due to the obvious limitations of acoustic guitars, but it comes out really well, a softer recording with very nice pickwork in the bridge. Right after the bridge, when the song almost becomes repetitive, they change it up, getting a little more intense, and it ends really well.

3. History of a Boring Town - Seminal track off of Hello Rockview. I wasn't that suprised to hear it on here. Missing are the "whooo ooooh's", which I was afraid the crowd would add in. Well, actually I think that they are trying to add them in, however the mics weren't sensitive enough, which is only a good thing in my opinion. This is a Chris heavy song, and I am really suprised how well he carries it. The harmonies on this are the best of the four tracks. Roger adds in the "whooo oooooh's" towards the end which adds to the build up that an acoustic track needs to keep your interest at times.

4. Welcome to the New South - Just not a song I like on Anthem. Say what you will, but this song never appealed to me. However, acoustic, this song actually shines. It sounds like it was originally a folk song! Very flowy strumming and sing-songy lyrics may have you swaying a bit by the end. The solo in the middle is soft, reserved and goes amazingly under Chris's bridge lyrics.

Overall, these are four tracks that any Less Than Jake fan should have. Are they tracks that everyone should run to their computers and buy from the iTunes Music Store? Probably not. However, for four bucks, you are definitely getting your money's worth. -punknews.org

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Less Than Jake - 2011 Hello Rockview: Live

Band : Less Than Jake

Album : Hello Rockview: Live

Release Year : 2011

Genre : Ska / Punk

Tracklist :

1 Last One Out Of Liberty City
2 Help Save The Youth Of America From Exploding
3 All My Best Friends Are Metalheads
4 Five State Drive
5 Nervous In The Alley
6 Motto
7 History Of A Boring Town
8 Great American Sharpshooter
9 Danny Says
10 Big Crash
11 Theme Song For H Street
12 Richard Allen George...No, It's Just Cheez
13 Scott Farcas Takes It On The Chin
14 Al's War
Recorded Live at The State Theater in St. Petersburg, FL on 02/09/2007

Similar in sound and approach to their previous release for Capitol (1996's Losing Streak), Hello Rockview shows that Less Than Jake have not lost their appetite for party-laden ska-punk. Horn bursts, rough 'n' melodic vocals, and high-energy performances from the other instrumentalists will please longtime fans, but Hello Rockview doesn't really break any new ground for the band. Still, tracks such as "Help Save the Youth of America from Exploding," "History of a Boring Town," and "Last One Out of Liberty City" would sound perfectly in place at a backyard party, or blaring from the stage of the Warped Tour (on which the band has played on several different occasions). Although many have been tempted to lump Less Than Jake in with the current ska-punk bandwagon, the truth is that they were one of the first bands to combine the two styles back in the early '90s.

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Less Than Jake - 2005 B Is For B-Sides Remix

Band : Less Than Jake

Album : B Is For B-Sides Remix

Release Year : 2005

Genre : Ska / Punk

Tracklist :

1. "Portrait of a Cigarette Smoker at 19"
2. "Sleep It Off"
3. "Bridge and Tunnel Authority"
4. "National Anthem"
5. "Goodbye in Gasoline"
6. "Last Rites to Sleepless Nites"
7. "Showbiz? Science? Who Cares?"
8. "Jay Frenzal"
9. "Nine-One-One to Anyone"
10. "Robots One, Humans Zero"

If you're expecting a full on techno twisting of their latest full-length, this ain't it. If you're expecting some of the best DJs in the world putting their mitts on the songs, you'll be surprised. If you're looking at this release as anything but B Is For B-Sides put through a synthesizer and drum machine, you'll be disappointed. To that end, there's no liner notes, no mention of where, when or how these remixes were produced, composed or recorded. There's no jewel case, but instead the CD is packaged in a cd sleeve. The art on that sleeve, done by Buff Monster, is odd, but technically sound. Its release was limited to 2000 copies.

 I don't pretend to know much about electronic music, but in most cases the beats follow the guitar and horn parts like a training horse. That is, to say, as faithful as it can to the path it learned, but with occasional deviations. One thing that drove me up a wall was that the vocals were almost EXACTLY the same as on B Is For B-Sides, so no song is drastically different than the one found on last year's version. That said, this version of "Robots One, Humans Zero" is the album's most experimental track (calling it experimental is digging a little too deep for comfort, though), and its drum-heavy, somber arrangement only adds to the depression of the original and stands as the album's best track. It's an amazing version, and if you can find it, it's worth the time to listen.

Going back to the meterstick analogy, if this is being judged as a new album with wildly different versions of your favorite tracks off of B Is For B-Sides, it fails miserably. If this is being judged as listenable material by a usually solid writing group, then it's passable. If this is being judged as Less Than Jake screwing with a synthesizer and drum machine, then it passes with flying colors. In short: These remixes sound like the group just wanted to compose B Is For B-Sides using different instruments.

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Less Than Jake - 2010 TV (EP)

Band : Less Than Jake

Album : TV (EP)

Release Year : 2010

Genre : Ska / Punk

Tracklist :

1. Channel 1
2. Channel 2
3. Channel 3
4. Channel 4
5. Channel 5
6. Channel 6
7. Channel 7
8. Channel 8
9. Channel 9
10. Channel 10
11. Channel 11
12. Channel 12
13. Channel 13
14. Channel 14
15. Channel 15
16. Channel 16

Floridian ska-punk veterans Less Than Jake return with their latest effort, a covers album of TV theme songs and commercial jingles. With its 16 tracks spanning only 13 minutes, this is a quick-fire release with each track separated by that “chk” noise of a TV dial changing.
Having previously released an album of covers from the musical Grease, and a good number of other tributes here and there (Tommy Tutone’s “Jenny (867-5309)” and the Partridge Family’s “I Think I Love you” being standouts), arranging classics into the ska-punk style is nothing new for Less Than Jake, and something they do with aplomb.
This disc opens with the band’s take on the Nickelodeon tween sit-com “iCarly”, followed quickly by the “Hungry Hungry Hippos” jingle which makes great use of the band’s horn section. Other noteworthy tracks are the fantastic “Animaniacs” theme which suits Less than Jake’s cartoonish appeal perfectly and includes a little self-deprecation with the line ‘covers are lame-y!’; and the “Married With Children” theme. “Spongebob Squarepants” is also an incredibly fun listen.
Where this EP lets itself down is in some of the song choices. Covering They Might Be Giants’ “Boss of Me” from Malcolm In The Middle seems either cheap or at best a tip-of-the-cap to that band, as little is changed from the original apart from a slight departure from the vocal melody. “Scooby Doo” and “Laverne and Shirley” have both been covered to death by bands of similar genres (the latter even being covered by this band some years ago on their Losers, Kings, and Things We Don’t Understand album). However this is counteracted by some wonderfully obscure choices such as the jingles for Pac-Man Cereal and American website 

 

 

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