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Less Than Jake – Keele University, Stoke

Less Than Jake – Keele University, Stoke

“We’re still a band!” Not the most optimistic thing to end a gig with but it seems that 1998 never ended for Less Than Jake. Hitting the UK to promote their latest offering, GNV FLA (Gainsville Florida for the initiated), the youthful ska punk remains as it most definitely was.

Bassist and vocalist Roger Manganelli still sounds like he stole his voice from a fifteen year old, the sax and trumpet still grab your attention to make the typical punk chords sound almost interesting and it still sounds as fresh and as fun as it did.

The albums ‘Hello Rockview’ and ‘Anthem’ get most attention, mainly because they were their most successful outings, but they were also Less Than Jake at their best, by far. The whole place erupts as the sample at the start of ‘All My Best Friends Are Metalheads’ kicks in, setting the tone for the rest of the night, the floor feels like it could fall through at any time, and if it did, no-one would notice as long as the band were still playing.

‘Plastic Cup Politics’ gets the best reaction, maybe because it was the beginning of the encore, maybe because it symbolises the band’s serious message in a not-so serious rhetoric. Although it’s not as if they were off the stage for long, the “Less Than Jake!” chants were instantaneous, much like their return. The crowd play a vital role in Less Than Jake and the band clearly recognise this, the between-songs banter is almost as entertaining as the songs themselves and few front row fans escape a ribbing. You can’t help but feel that as soon as this generation stop coming to see Less Than Jake (always wearing shorts, something I never understood about ska) Less Than Jake will stop gigging.

‘She’s Gonna Break Soon’, the bands most commercial release, didn’t even get a look in, and it wasn’t missed. There’s no denying ska-punk can get a bit monotonous, but everyone at the gig loved Less Than Jake in their prime and they are certainly reminiscing their teenage years, and why not. When they were like this, why shouldn’t they?

 

Review by Jack Phillips

 

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