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/
Mostly Memories
Less Than Jake Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Either side of this modern version or fading person I was
I tried to memorize dates and times of
Old accidents and the failed attempts
Now I'm, I'm still afraid of those mistakes I've made
I'm mostly memories, most missed opportunities
Mostly minor tragedies, I'm mostly you and me
Mostly abnormalities, I'm mostly you and me, you and me
I can't seem to recognize, either side of my conversations
Or contemplations I've done
I've tried to memorize the truth and lies
Of the facts and fictions and the half truth admissions I've done
I'm still afraid of those mistakes I've made
I'm mostly memories, mostly missed opportunities
Mostly minor tragedies, I'm mostly you and me
Mostly memories, most missed opportunities
Mostly abnormalities, I'm mostly you and me, you and me
Out of luck and had enough
Out of trust and out of touch
Out of time, I'm hanging up
I'm mostly memories, mostly missed opportunities
Mostly minor tragedies, I'm mostly you and me
Mostly memories, most missed opportunities
Mostly abnormalities, I'm mostly you and me
I'm mostly memories, mostly missed opportunities
Mostly abnormalities, I'm mostly you and me
Mostly memories, most missed opportunities
Mostly minor tragedies, I'm mostly you and me and you and me
I'm mostly memories
The lyrics of "Mostly Memories" by Less Than Jake explore the idea of identity and self-reflection. The singer seems to be struggling to understand and recognize both sides of themselves - the modern version and the fading past. They have tried to remember the dates and times of old accidents and failed attempts, but they are still afraid of the mistakes they have made.
The chorus emphasizes the idea that the singer is mostly memories - memories of missed opportunities, minor tragedies, and abnormalities. They are mostly made up of their past experiences and interactions with another person, who they describe as "you and me." The second verse continues this reflection by discussing the singer's conversations and contemplations, as well as their struggles with truth and lies, facts and fictions, and half-truth admissions.
The final lines of the song, "Out of luck and had enough, out of trust and out of touch, out of time, I'm hanging up," suggest that the singer may be feeling defeated and disconnected from themselves and others. Overall, "Mostly Memories" is a poignant and introspective examination of the human experience.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't seem to recognize
I'm having a hard time recognizing things
Either side of this modern version or fading person I was
I can't tell if I'm still the same person or if I've changed too much
I tried to memorize dates and times of old accidents and the failed attempts
I tried to remember all the times I messed up, but it's still scary to think about them
Now I'm, I'm still afraid of those mistakes I've made
I'm still scared of the mistakes I made in the past
I'm mostly memories, most missed opportunities
I'm defined by my memories and the opportunities I've missed out on
Mostly minor tragedies, I'm mostly you and me
I've experienced a lot of small tragedies and I feel like I'm just like everyone else
I can't seem to recognize, either side of my conversations or contemplations I've done
I can't tell if the thoughts and ideas I have are still the same or if they've changed too much
I've tried to memorize the truth and lies of the facts and fictions and the half truth admissions I've done
I've tried to remember what's real and what's not, but it's hard to keep track of everything
Out of luck and had enough
I'm unlucky and I've had a lot of problems
Out of trust and out of touch
I don't trust people and I feel disconnected from the world
Out of time, I'm hanging up
I don't have time for this anymore, I'm done
Mostly abnormalities, I'm mostly you and me
I feel like I'm different from everyone else, but at the same time, I'm just like everyone else
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: LOUIS JAMES SCHAUB, PETER JOHN WASILEWSKI, ROGERIO LIMA MANGANELLI, VINCENT PHILLIP FIORELLO
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind