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/

The Space They Can
Less Than Jake Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now.
And you keep feeling like you're always out of place.
Don't you think it's strange you always feel the same now?
So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now.

And you keep feeling like you're always out of place.
Don't you think it's strange you always feel the same now?
Who measure the desperate measures,

When it gets too much remember.

There is a space, they just can't touch.
And this pressures on to be good enough.
It's all the words,
That add weight trying to drag you down.

So you're feeling like you're just a powder keg now?
And you keep feeling like you've been a cast away.
Don't you think it's strange that it won't go away now.
So you think you're feeling like you can't be saved now?

And you keep feeling like everyone's taking aim,
Do you feel you're pushed and pulled and forced to change now?
Who measure the desperate measures,
When it gets too much remember.

There is a space, they just can't touch.
And this pressures on to be good enough.
It's all the words,
That add weight trying to drag you down.

So remember you're still bulletproof,
Remember the face stares back at you.
No matter what they say,
No matter what they do.
It can't be taken away from you.
It can't be taken away and that's the truth.

So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now?
And you keep feeling like everyone's taking aim.
Don't you think it's strange you always feel the same now?
Who measure the desperate measures,
When it gets too much remember.

There is a space, they just can't touch.
And this pressures on to be good enough.
It's all the words,
That add weight trying to drag you down.

It's all the words,
That add weight trying to drag you down.

It's all just words that add weight,
Trying to drag you down.

Overall Meaning

The Space They Can't Touch by Less Than Jake is a song that discusses the feeling of inadequacy and being out of place. The lyrics speak to individuals who feel like they don't belong and that they don't measure up to society's standards. The song implores those who feel isolated and weak to remember that there is a space that they occupy that others cannot touch. It reminds people that no matter what others say or do to them, their identity and inner strength cannot be taken away.

The lyrics speak to the listener on a personal level, encouraging them to embrace their uniqueness and individuality. The song tells individuals that they will always face pressure to be "good enough" and that words and actions from others can attempt to drag them down, but they must remember that their strength and identity cannot be taken away. The repetition of phrases such as "don't you think it's strange you always feel the same now" and "who measures the desperate measures" highlights the cyclical nature of feeling isolated and out of place.

The song's message of resilience resonated with Less Than Jake's fanbase, particularly with individuals who were struggling to find their place in the world. The relatable lyrics, rousing chorus, and upbeat tempo make this song a fan favorite.

Line by Line Meaning

So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now.
You feel unimportant and worthless.

And you keep feeling like you're always out of place.
You feel like you don't fit in anywhere.

Don't you think it's strange you always feel the same now?
You find it weird that you keep feeling this way.

Who measure the desperate measures,
Who determines how extreme the actions should be.

When it gets too much remember.
When the burden becomes overwhelming, remember.

There is a space, they just can't touch.
There is a part of you that cannot be affected by outside influences.

And this pressures on to be good enough.
The pressure to be good enough is present.

It's all the words,
It's all the criticisms and negative comments.

That add weight trying to drag you down.
That make you feel like you're being weighed down emotionally.

So remember you're still bulletproof,
Remember that you're strong and can withstand challenges.

Remember the face stares back at you.
Remember that you are ultimately responsible for your own well-being.

No matter what they say,
No matter what others say about you.

No matter what they do.
No matter what others do to you.

It can't be taken away from you.
Your sense of self-worth cannot be taken away from you.

It can't be taken away and that's the truth.
It's a fact that your inner strength cannot be taken away.

So you think you're feeling like you can't be saved now?
You believe that you are beyond help.

And you keep feeling like everyone's taking aim,
You feel like others are targeting you with their criticism.

Do you feel you're pushed and pulled and forced to change now?
Do you feel like you're being pressured to change for the sake of others?

So you're feeling like you're just a powder keg now?
You feel like you're about to explode emotionally.

And you keep feeling like you've been a cast away.
You feel like you've been rejected and cast aside by others.

It's all just words that add weight,
Criticism and negative comments only serve to make things worse.

Trying to drag you down.
Trying to make you feel worse about yourself.

Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: LOUIS JAMES SCHAUB, PETER WASILEWSKI, ROGERIO MANGANELLI, VINNIE FIORELLO

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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Most interesting comment from YouTube:

Madelene Reim

Dig down deep, hide it with a smile, 'cause
There's a space that they can't touch, no

So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now
And you keep feeling like you're always out of place
Don't you think it's strange we always feel the same now?
So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now
And you keep feeling like you're always out of place
Don't you think it's strange we always feel the same now?

Who measures the desperate measures?
When it gets too much, remember

There is a space they just can't touch
And this pressure's on to be good enough
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down
There is a space they just can't touch
And this pressure's on to be good enough
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down

So you're feeling like you're just a powder keg now
And you keep feeling like you've been a castaway
Don't you think it's strange that it won't go away now?
So you think you're feeling like you can't be saved now?
And you keep feeling like everyone's taking aim
Do you feel you're pushed and pulled and forced to change now?

Who measures the desperate measures?
When it gets too much, remember

There is a space they just can't touch
And this pressure's on to be good enough
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down
There is a space they just can't touch
And this pressure's on to be good enough
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down

So remember you're still bulletproof
Remember the face stares back at you
No matter what they say
No matter what they do
It can't be taken away from you
It can't be taken away and that's the truth

So you're feeling like you're just a waste of space now?
And you keep feeling like everyone's taking aim
Don't you think it's strange we always feel the same now?

Who measures the desperate measures?
When it gets too much, remember

There is a space they just can't touch
And this pressure's on to be good enough
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down
There is a space they just can't touch
And this pressure's on to be good enough
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down

It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down
It's all the words that add weight
Trying to drag you down
It's all just words that add weight
Trying to drag you down