Less Than Jake is a ska punk band formed in 1992 in Gainesville, USA. Their… Read Full Bio ↴Less Than Jake is a ska punk band formed in 1992 in Gainesville, USA. Their current line-up consists of Chris DeMakes (vocals, guitar), Roger Lima (vocals, bass), Matt Yonker (drums), Buddy Schaub (trombone) and Peter "JR" Wasilewski (saxophone).

The band's name derives from a bird Vinnie had while growing up, which was treated better than the rest of the family. It's also a reference to the phrase "everything is jake," which is an old phrase meaning everything is cool.

Less Than Jake released their debut album, Pezcore, in 1995, following a series of independent seven-inch single releases. The band's subsequent two studio albums, Losing Streak (1996) and Hello Rockview (1998), were released on major label, Capitol Records, leading to increased exposure. The band's fifth studio album Anthem (2003) was their most commercially successful to date, featuring the singles, "She's Gonna Break Soon" and "The Science of Selling Yourself Short".

In 2008 the band founded its own label, Sleep It Off Records, and released its seventh full-length album, GNV FLA. The band has recently stated its preference for EP releases, and independently issued Greetings from Less Than Jake (2011) and its counterpart, Seasons Greetings from Less Than Jake (2012). In late 2012, the band combined the two to create the compilation album, Greetings and Salutations (2012) Their eighth studio album, See the Light, was released on November 12, 2013.

Miscellaneous Info:

Vinnie was previously the owner of the independent record label Fueled by Ramen, as well as a toy company called Wünderland War (formerly Monkey Vs. Robot). This label has signed bands such as Fall Out Boy, Punchline, The AKAs, Gym Class Heroes, Panic! At The Disco and Days Away. Roger, meanwhile, is in a second band, called Rehasher, for whom he composes lyrics and plays guitar. JR played sax on the last track of Off Key Melodies. JR works with a promoting company called the CT Mafia, as well as composing solo music. He contributed one track to the Drive-Thru compilation tribute to Bob Dylan, using the band name The Stay At Home Joneses (Roger sang backup for this track).

Roger and Vinnie have an unexplained fetish for Pez candy and they reportedly have sizeable dispenser collections. This love for Pez goes so far as to name one of their albums, Pezcore (parodying of the way in which many bands are described as [something]-core, starting with hardcore) and Pez dispenser motifs are a common feature of their merchandise.

Roger's employment history includes a smoke shop in the band's hometown Gainesville, Florida known as Knuckleheads which has since been transformed into a similar establishment named Smoke. Band member haunts have included Eddie C's, the Hardback (which was transformed into the Lyric), and Insomnia (which used to be the Covered Dish, and is now the new location of Common Grounds).

The members of Less Than Jake also served as backup musicians for Asian Man Records owner Mike Park in the B.Lee Band (once called "the Bruce Lee Band", changed for legal reasons).

The track "Look What Happened" appeared on two of their albums, "Borders & Boundaries" (2000) and "Anthem." (2003) The "Anthem" version is completely re-recorded, and has eschewed the brass at the beginning of the song that was featured in the previous recording. The re-recording features guest vocals from Teen Idols/Bullets To Broadway's Heather.

They have also re-recorded many other songs, including "Johnny Quest Thinks We're Sellouts," "Jen Doesn't Like Me Anymore" and "Shotgun".

They recorded the main theme song "We're all Dudes" for the 1997 film "Goodburger" based on the sketch from the Nikelodeon TV show "All That." The song features Kel Mitchell (main character, Ed, in the movie). The song is based off of the jingle "Ed" would always sing while waiting for the next situation to come up in the Goodburger sketches. At the end of the song Mitchell says "Ah, Ed and Less than Jake, oh, uh... no?"

In 2004, Less Than Jake appeared on the Projekt Revolution Tour, joining such artists as The Used, Snoop Dogg, Korn, and the headlining band: Linkin Park.

Lineups:

Chris DeMakes - vocals and guitar (1992–present)
Roger Lima - vocals and bass (1993–present)
Buddy ''Goldfinger'' Schaub - tenor trombone and backing vocals (1993–present)
Peter ''JR'' Wasilewski - tenor saxophone and backing vocals (2000–present)
Matt Yonker - Drums (2018–present)

Past members:

Jessica Mills - alto saxophone (1993–1998)
Derron Nuhfer - tenor and baritone saxophone (1995–2000)
Pete Anna - tenor and alto trombone (1998–2001)
Vinnie Fiorello - drums (1992–2018)

Website: http://www.lessthanjake.com/

Give Me Something to Believe In
Less Than Jake Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Let me bring you back to the living
Back to the time when you did more than exist
Your compass is broken
You call yourself broken
You call yourself fallen, but you're losing your grip

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
I'm waiting on a reason

Not to keep on floating along

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
So I can give you reasons
To wake yourself up, and come in from the storm

Let me tell you I have some stories
And a few lines that you might wanna sink in
You can't think you'll get lucky
Wishing on nothing
Crossing your fingers, and hoping you're fixed

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
I'm waiting on a reason
Not to keep on floating along

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
So I can give you reasons
To wake yourself up, and come in from the storm
Ohhhhhh, you gotta wake yourself up, and come in from the storm

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
I'm waiting on a reason
Not to keep on floating along

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
So I can give you reasons
To wake yourself up, and come in from the storm

Wake yourself up, and come in from the storm
Ohhhhhh, you gotta wake yourself up, and come in from the storm

Overall Meaning

"Give Me Something to Believe In" by Less Than Jake is about trying to find hope and purpose in a life that feels directionless and meaningless. The song begins with the singer urging the listener to remember a time when they felt more alive, when they were more than just existing. He acknowledges that they feel broken and fallen, but he implores them not to give up, not to lose their grip. He wants something to believe in, a reason to keep moving forward, to not just "keep on floating along."

The chorus repeats the request for "something to believe in," emphasizing the singer's desperate need for hope and inspiration. He wants to be able to give the listener reasons to wake up and come in from the storm, to face the difficulties of life head-on instead of hiding away from them. The bridge of the song acknowledges that there are no guarantees, no easy solutions, and no shortcuts to happiness or success. The listener can't just sit around wishing or hoping for things to change - they need to take action and make things happen.

Overall, "Give Me Something to Believe In" is a powerful song about the struggle to find meaning and purpose in a world that can often feel cold and uncaring. The singer is urging the listener to find the strength to keep fighting, to keep pushing forward, even in the face of uncertainty, doubt, and fear. It's a message that resonates with anyone who has ever felt lost or alone, and it's delivered with passion and conviction by Less Than Jake.

Line by Line Meaning

Let me bring you back to the living
Allow me to remind you of the joy and vitality of life

Back to the time when you did more than exist
A time when you were truly living, not just going through the motions

Your compass is broken
You're lost and directionless

You call yourself broken
You see yourself as damaged or flawed

You call yourself fallen, but you're losing your grip
You may have once been strong, but now you're slowly slipping away

Oh-oh, give me something to believe in
I'm seeking a reason to have faith or hope

I'm waiting on a reason
I'm hoping for a compelling purpose or justification

Not to keep on floating along
Rather than aimlessly drifting through life

So I can give you reasons
If I have a reason to believe, I can pass it on to you

To wake yourself up, and come in from the storm
To shake off complacency and face the difficulties of life

Let me tell you I have some stories
I have experiences and examples to share