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/
Suburban Myth
Less Than Jake Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I'll show you where I lost my job
And where I got chased by cops
So we'll jump the fence at 13th and 10th
To see where we played our first show
I told you everybody loses sight of
All the how it's been and never was
And I'll show you where I drank on the job
And hung out In that parking lot
Left at the light there's park 16th on the right
And that's the place that we called home
That place you'll never get a chance to know
And all the people through the years you could've known
It makes me wonder what your seeing is almost "home"
The lyrics to Less Than Jake's song Suburban Myth depict a nostalgic journey through the past of the singer's suburban hometown. The singer invites his companion to join him on a tour of the town's landmarks of his past - where he lost his job, where he was chased by cops, where they jumped the fence to play their first show, where he drank on the job, and where he hung out in the parking lot. The singer acknowledges that everyone loses sight of "all the how it's been and never was," and he invites his companion to join him to remember those moments in time. The song ends with a melancholic tinge, expressing the reality that the places and people who were once so familiar to the singer are now gone, and the current generation will never know how the town used to be.
The lyrics of Suburban Myth signify the universal experience of reminiscing about the past, reminiscing about the place that was once "home." The song provokes a sense of longing for the times when life was simpler and the present wasn't clouded with the pressures and responsibilities of adulthood. However, it also sheds light on the paradox that even as one desires to go back in time, it is impossible to recreate that past in the present. The song also challenges listeners to reflect on what they see and experience in their environment and how it shapes their perception of what "home" means.
Line by Line Meaning
So let's hit the streets tonight
Let's go out tonight and I'll show you around
And I'll show you where I lost my job
I'll bring you to the place where I got fired from work
And where I got chased by cops
I'll show you where I was almost caught by the police
So we'll jump the fence at 13th and 10th
Let's sneak into a restricted area near the intersection of 13th and 10th street
To see where we played our first show
We'll revisit the venue where our band performed for the first time
I told you everybody loses sight of
I mentioned that people tend to forget
All the how it's been and never was
The events, both good and bad, that have occurred and those that didn't happen
And I'll show you where I drank on the job
I'll bring you to the spot where I drank alcohol during work hours
And hung out In that parking lot
And where I spent time chilling in that particular parking area
Left at the light there's park 16th on the right
If we turn left at the traffic light, we will find park 16th avenue on the right side of the road
And that's the place that we called home
The park was a familiar and comfortable place for us
That place you'll never get a chance to know
Unfortunately, you won't be able to experience that place
And all the people through the years you could've known
If you were there during those years, you could have met the people who were significant to us
It makes me wonder what your seeing is almost "home"
It makes me question if the places and people you see now seem like home to you
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind