When questioned about the new album in a recent interview, Chris stated something along of the lines of “If you are already a fan of Less Than Jake, you will love this album. If you are not, it probably won’t change your mind.” I mostly agree with this sentiment. Less Than Jake is one of my favorite bands and I have liked nearly every single full length with the exception of In With the Out Crowd, which still had a handful of really solid tracks. I do feel that anyone that likes Less Than Jake will like this album, it’s just more of a matter of whether you will love it or think it is just decent. I seem to lean towards the latter.
An elephant in the room that is hard not to address is this is the first Less Than Jake album without founding member/drummer/lyricist Vinnie Fiorello. His lyrics have been one of the reasons they have been my favorite band over the last few years. In place of Vinnie’s lyrical contribution is the collective effort from Chris, Roger, and JR. At times, the lyrics seem more simplistic, but the lyrical themes stay the same. Matt Yonker, mostly known for being the former drummer of the Teen Idols, does a fine job of holding it down behind the kit.
The album kicks off with the punchy and punky “The High Cost of Low Living.” It’s a solid way to start off the album and likely a good way to start an evening when you are about to hit the town. Next is “Lie to Me,” which was chosen as the first single. This song, along with “Anytime and Anywhere” and “Monkey Wrench Myself” exemplify what Less Than Jake do best: catchy, zestful songs with blazing horns, crunchy guitars, vigorous vocals, and jolly bass lines.
While not fully aping songs of the past, there are some songs that hold some of the same vibes from older LTJ songs. “The Test” has an urgent guitar line along the lines of “Settling Son” off of GNV FLA. Chris’ dire vocals really bring this song home. “Lost at Home” shares the same pace as “The Science of Selling Yourself Short” or “Goodbye Personality.” This song seemed really tedious to me at first, but really grew on me over time. “So Much Less” is the album closer and reminds me a bit of the closing track off In With the Out Crowd, the excellent “PS Shock the World.” It’s no surprise it is one of my favorites, but has an awkward, Kenny G type saxophone solo in it that comes off as kind of cool and kind of corny at the same time. Roger’s vocal delivery in the song has a great groove to it.
“Keep on Chasing” and “Move” are decent enough songs, but seem to be on the dull side for me. Both songs feel a little generic to me, but I will say that “Move” has grown on me with time. “King of the Downside” has a fun, bouncy feel to it and “Dear Me’ is a strong punk song with a super catchy chorus. The last song to mention is the endearing song “Bill,” which is a nice tribute to Bill Stevenson from the Descendents/ALL/Only Crime/etc.
Less Than Jake have yet again delivered another up to par album. I would imagine this would fall somewhere in the middle of your list of favorite LTJ albums. It’s a solid album with great production by Roger Lima. Hopefully we don’t have to wait another seven years for another full length.
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