Posted on: July 24, 2010 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

Less Than Jake has been around for a long time, there’s no denying that, but the band has came through with each subsequent album in ways that older acts typically are not able to do. Less Than Jake create a single in “Overrated” that is done in the same sing-songy style of acts like Bowling For Soup (1985) and Everclear (Volvo Driving Soccer Mom), a great representation for the band. The band does not only work in this narrow band, with a song like “The Rest of My Life” being something that is in the vein of Hoobastank’s “The Reason”.

This will be the song that individuals will be singing all this summer, much as “Boulevard of Broken Dreams” was sung last summer. The production of this disc is enough hat even the ska side of Less Than Jake comes through clearly; where individuals might think that the band has dropped these roots to make a play for the big time, there are a few tracks on “In With The Out Crowd” that go up against that line of thought. The major ska track from the disc, “A Still Life Franchise”, is fairly laid-back in much of the same way that Rancid’s “Life Won’t Wait” is; the ska style present is linked with the band’s previous hit “History of a Boring Town”. The multiple sets of vocals on “A Still Life Franchise” gives the band a full sound that keeps individuals listening in and not wanting anything more from the act. Finishing up this track with horn lines that are done in a step-ladder fashion, Less Than Jake show that their roots are about as visible as a bleach blonde two months out from the procedure. “Sound rack of My Life” starts off “In With The Out Crowd”, and while it is a fairly safe track for the band it really sets up the rest of the disc.

Less Than Jake have been around since I seriously got into music, and while most bands from that era either are pale imitations of their original selves or are gone completely, Less Than Jake have been able to continue with their career in a way that they wish. For fans of the band or even new individuals that are just getting into music, Less Than Jake speaks equally well to anyone for a large variety of reasons. The band is here to stay.

Top Tracks: Let Her Go, Mostly Memories

Rating: 6.0/10

Less Than Jake – In With The Out Crowd / 2006 Warner Bros / 12 Tracks / http://www.lessthanjake.com / http://www.warnerbros.com / Reviewed 21 April 2006

[JMcQ]

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