A Lesson In… 10.20.09: Less Than Jake

Posted by Alistair McGeorge on 10.20.2009

One of the leading modern acts in the Third Wave of ska, Less Than Jake have been together for 17 years and 7 studio albums. After a change in style with 2006’s In With The Out Crowd, the band returned to form with last year’s GNV FLA. Join Alistair McGeorge has he takes a look at the career of Less Than Jake.

We're back for another absolutely thrilling edition of A Lesson In…, and as always I'm Alistair McGeorge, here to take you through the career of another band. This week, we're "riding the Third Wave" (I doubt many readers got the reference, but I hope at least someone did) with one of the forerunners in the ska-punk scene. There's actually some feedback of sorts this week, so we'll get to that momentarily…but STOP!

It's banner time.



Feedback

So, last week I provided A Lesson In… Bowling For Soup, as well as an album review for their latest release, Sorry For Partyin'. The column itself didn't really attract much in the way of comments, besides Jared who guessed this week's band.

That said, the album review, at the time of me writing this, had promoted a few…we'll say…disagreeable responses. Obviously that's fine, and I couldn't be bothered replying to them individually to them in the comments section there, so I thought I'd do it here. I'll apologize in advance for the language used in of the comments, as it appears some readers can't express their opinions without swearing. So, we'll start off with an incredibly well-thought and well-crafted comment from Ted:

This band sucks baboon balls. Always have, always will.

Well…I'd like to say you made such a convincing argument that I just have to agree with you but…that couldn't be further from the truth. Surely there are better ways to put forward your opinion by, say, backing it up? I'd hardly say my opinion is gospel, but I'd like to think I at least try to justify it. One commenter who hasn't quite found a way to express his opinion in a sensible way is Foolio, who provided us with this…

God those two songs you posted are fucking awful. Very good? Go fuck yourself.

I said it again. Well…where to start? I certainly won't condemn Foolio for disliking the two songs I included in my review, but the way the comment is written leads me to think he's basing his opinion (that the album isn't "very good") on those two songs. I'd encourage every reader to take every review on here for what it is- one writer's opinion. Whilst, generally, the writers here at 411mania know what we're writing about, our opinions shouldn't be taken on face value. Again, I don't mind this Foolio character having his own opinion, but resorting to swearing and verbal abuse isn't really a great way to go about expressing it.

I fear now I'm just going to get into a big rant about the difference between fact and opinion, and how best to express, and differentiate between, the two. So, we'll leave the comments there, but if you want to read them, just click the link at the top of this section. Alternatively, a drop-down link to all my pieces for 411 so far can be found at the end of the column. On that note, let's get to this week's band…



Less Than Jake officially formed in 1992, with Vinnie Fiorello (drums) and Chris Demakes (guitar and vocals). The band settled on bassist Roger Mangelli, who was at the University of Florida with the duo. By 1993, Jessica Mills joined as Less Than Jake's first horn player. Their first 7" Smoke Spot was released (limited to 300 copies) in the same year.

Buddy Schaub (trombone) joined the band soon after, and the next few years were spent putting out their first E.P. (Better Class of Losers) and various vinyl records. Less Than Jake were signed in 2005 to Dill Records, who agreed to release their debut effort. During a tour early 2005, Schaub was in Europe with friends. His replacement- Derron Nuhfer (saxophone)- would become an official member in August that year. Something else saw the light of day that month. Any guesses what it could be?



Jen doesn't like to come to my shows…

Less Than Jake released Pezcore on August 22 1995 to little fan-fare. Whilst a relative favorite with older fans, it didn't do well commercially. It included some tracks that would be on later releases (such as "Jen Doesn't Like Me Anymore" and "Johnny Quest Thinks We're Sell Outs").

Shortly after, Losers Kings and Things We Don't Understand was released as a compilation of every Less Than Jake release to date, with the exception of Pezcore. It also included a previously unreleased track in the form of "Good Time For Change".

Shortly after this, the band were signed to Capitol Records, who put out Less Than Jake's first major label record in 2006…



Something's out there, and it brings me back…

November 12 1996 saw the release of Losing Streak, the band's major label debut and sophomore album. Featuring Mills and Nuhrer on alto and bari sax respectively, it also boasted better production, but this was most probably the result of the label change, rather than an active decision by the band to alter their sound.

MTV actually used a video of the track "Automatic" on their alternative music showcase 120 Minutes and Dr. 90210, made up of fan video footage from shows in Gainesville, Florida and Chicago. As I mentioned earlier, a couple of tracks from Pezcore were re-recorded during the Losing Streak sessions. Along with "Johnny Quest Thinks We're Sell Outs", the following track was re-recorded for the album…



The album is actually a fair bit better than I remembered it being. I hadn't given it a huge chance when I first bought it (a couple of years ago, with the re-release combo with a future album), but after listening to it all in one sitting today, I have to say it's better than I thought. I forgot how many songs from the album I actually like, and how well it runs together. Despite that, it failed to chart in the U.S. Billboard, but did hit #89 in the UK Albums Chart and #18 in the U.S. Heetseakers chart.

This surge in popularity was largely due to extensive touring, including a spot on the 1997 Warped Tour, plus a tour with Blink-182. Following the Warped Tour dates, Jessica Mills left the band to pursue teaching, and Pete Anna eventually replaced her in January 2008 (Lars Nylander filled in during the fall of '97). During this period, music label Fueled By Ramen was co-founded by Fiorello. By 1998, their next album would be released…



So you think of what it could've been…

Hello Rockview was released on Capitol Records on October 6 1998. It would be Less Than Jake's second and last album for the label. It reached #80 in the U.S. Billboard 200, and peaked at the same spot in the UK as the previous album, #89. The first single from the album peaked at #39 in the Modern Rock Tracks chart in the U.S., and is actually one of my favorite tracks on the album. It a minor college radio hit despite the lack of a promotional video. Ladies and gentlemen… "History of a Boring Town"…



In a reversal of fortunes, the following single "All My Best Friends Are Metalheads" failed to perform well in the States, but hit #51 in the UK (making it the only single by the band to chart over here at that point, and their second highest charting single in the UK).

Hello Rockview was another great album by Less Than Jake, and is one of the four I actually own hard copies of. Like I said earlier, I bought it as part of the re-release package (coupling it with Losing Streak), and it was always my favorite of the two. Tracks like "Great American Sharpshooter", the singles and "Al's War" stand out as my personal highlights, but it's a very strong ska album that should definitely be given a chance.

It was following this release that tension began to grow between the band and the label, with one reason cited as the label's failing to fund a video for "History of a Boring Town". Furthermore, Less Than Jake started to sell full-length shows online, plus two full-length CDs (Bootleg a Bootleg, You Cut Out The Middle Man and Goodbye Blue and White) through their web store. The contract stated these didn't have to be released through Capitol, but the tension increased because of these issues.

After recording what would become their next studio album, Less Than Jake bought out their contract, and the next release would be through Fat Wreck Chords…



Is This Thing On?

Borders and Boundaries was released on October 24 2000, and saw a decline in chart positions from the previous two albums. It failed to make a huge impact on the Billboard 200 (hitting #103), and only peaked at #99 in the UK. In terms of the sound of the album, I can't really comment because I don't own it and couldn't find it online (without spending hours going through Youtube, which I didn't have the time to do this week), but I've heard the odd track.

The singles were also less successful; "Gainesville Rock City" didn't make an impact in the US, and only hit #57 over here. "Look What Happened" was just released as a promo disc, so a great performance wasn't expected. The next album would spawn a couple of much more successful singles, as well as just generally being a very good album. Before that, as is (mostly) always the case with bands I seem to cover here, there were a few line-up changes.

Nuhrer left the band shortly after Borders and Boundaries was recorded, with Pete Wasilewski replacing him. To avoid confusion with the "other Pete" (Anna), Wasilewski was nicknamed JR ("Pete Junior"). Anna left in 2001 after the Warped Tour, but JR still goes under that name.

Releases of Goodbye Blue and White and Pezcore marked the 10th anniversary of the band in 2002, and by 2003 the band would see a big rise in popularity…



Just sing along, I'm the King of Catastrophes

Anthem was released on May 20 2003 on Sire (an imprint of Warner Bros. Records), and was produced by Rob Cavallo. To date, it's Less Than Jake's most successful release, peaking at #45 in the Billboard 200, and it spent 12 weeks in the chart. In the UK, the album reached #37, becoming easily their most successful album over here as well.

The singles also saw much more success. "She's Gonna Break Soon" was a big hit in the UK, hitting #39 in the UK Singles Chart, and getting a decent amount of play on TV. In the UK at least, it was the band's biggest hit to date. "The Science of Selling Yourself Short" was less successful over here (reaching #78), but would be Less Than Jake's biggest hit in the States, hitting an impressive #36 in the U.S. Modern Rock charts. "The Brightest Bulb That Burned Out", featuring Billy Bragg also spent some time in the UK Top 40 (Singles Chart).

Their fall tour in 2003 is noteworthy purely to mention the support for the tour. Joining the band were Yellowcard, Bang Tango and…Fall Out Boy! This may be common knowledge to everyone except me (although I remember now that Less Than Jake mentioned something about this when I saw them at Leeds Festival 2008, but it had slipped my mind), but it's interesting to think about how things have changed in just 6 years.

Anyway, it's time for another musical interlude! Ooh, "Look What Happened"!



On July 20 2004, a collection of songs that failed to make the cut for Anthem was released. Entitled B is For B-sides, it actually reached #157 in the Billboard 200, despite pretty much no promotion. Oddly enough, it was through this record I got into Less Than Jake in the first place, after a friend played me "National Anthem", which is still one my favorite LTJ songs to date. Typically enough, it turns out the band hates playing it live because it's "too fast", and was "written in like five minutes". Either way, I still love it.

It would take two years, but in 2006 the next LTJ studio album was finally here. It was an album that people generally either loved or hated, and which camp you're in seemed to depend on whether you were in the band, or just a "core fan".



Everything is overrated…

In With the Out Crowd was released on May 23 2006, and was a big departure from the band's recognized sound. The horn section was reduced a lot, in favor of a more pop-punk-based style. The response to this record from older fans wasn't favorable, but this didn't really faze the band members. From what I've read, it just sounds like they wanted to try something different. JR, in an interview to promote the next album, said: "There was a lot of backlash from our last record…and whether it was deserve or not is neither here nor there…because my opinion of our last record has never changed; it's an awesome record, and I love it."

At the time I heard In With the Out Crowd, I hadn't heard a lot of LTJ (besides bits of B-sides), so I didn't really understand why my friend seemed to hate it so much. As a pop-punk album, it's a fantastic effort, but after hearing the rest of LTJ's material (and preferring it to this release), my fondness has lessened over time.

The album peaked at #78 and 55 in the Billboard 200 and UK Album charts respectively, and spawned five singles. All three failed to make an impact in the States, but charted at various positions in the UK. "Overrated (Everything Is)" and "A Still Life Franchise" peaked at #61 in the UK Singles chart, followed by "The Rest of My Life" and "Don't Fall Asleep On The Subway" reaching #77. Finally, "P.S. Shock The World" saw a decline in performance, peaking at #96.

At times, I think the album is vastly under-rated by older fans of Less Than Jake. I mean, it does still have the odd great ska moment, or at least the odd track that goes back to the ska-punk sound. Take this for example…



In 2007, it was announced that the band had been granted their release from Sire Records and Warner Brothers. In January of the following year, it was also announced that the next album would be released on the band's own label Sleep It Off Records. Their back catalogue would also be re-issued on this label.



This is the space that they can't touch…

GNV FLA was released on June 24 2008, and was a return to the old LTJ sound combining third wave ska and pop-punk. It debuted (and peaked) at #61 in the Billboard 200, selling 10,300 copies in its first week. In the UK, it would only reach #171. Singles "Does The Lion City Still Roar?", "Abandon Ship" (UK only) and "Conviction Notice" failed to make any kind of impact.

That said, the album was still a great return to form, and there isn't really a bad song on it. Tracks like "Devil in My DNA" and "Conviction Notice" are catchy ska at its best, and "Malachi Richter's Liquor's Quicker" is a brilliant pop-punk driven tune that deserves a listen…



Grading…Less Than Jake

I've realized over this column, I'm a bigger fan of Less Than Jake than I thought. Despite only owning physical copies of Hello Rockview, In With the Out Crowd, Losing Streak and GNV FLA, I know more of the back catalogue than I thought. I was also surprised that I actually managed to listen to what I could of it (6 albums, plus B-sides), and not get bored. There are better ska bands out there (I'm thinking, Reel Big Fish), but Less Than Jake are still up there with the best of them.

Homework

Here's the clues for next week's band…


1. For anyone who's been checking 411mania the last day or so, they got a mention in the News section, with an audio file of a cover they performed during a recent sound-check.
2. They like girls who aren't grey, but quite like the murderers.
3. In 2007, they "heard a voice".

They could be obscure, they could be difficult, I'm not too sure. Either way, feel free to comment with any guesses, plus any comments on the column in general. Until then…



Class dismissed.