Kerrang (Magazine) (p.53) - "[The album] took LTJ out of the underground to find a much wider audience at the peak of ska-punk's popularity."
Less Than Jake: Chris (vocals, guitar); Roger (vocals, bass); Derron (baritone saxophone); Buddy, Pete (trombone); Vinnie (drums).
Additional personnel: Howard Benson (keyboards).
Recorded at Mirror Image Studios, Gainsville, Florida.
Emerging as part of the third wave ska revival, Less Than Jake combines near-metal guitar with a punk-inflected rhythm section that splits its time between Jamaican rhythms and '90s pop-punk. The synthesized-sounding horns that accent the ska feel on several of the more syncopated tracks might sound cheesy, but that's sort of the point. Less Than Jake doesn't take itself or anything else all that seriously, and they don't expect you to either. Their image and sound are essentially light-hearted and comical (the CD booklet contains a 12-page cartoon), but that doesn't stop Less Than Jake from raging through HELLO ROCKVIEW like there's a prize for whoever gets to the end of the last song first. Equal parts pop, punk and ska, the album will put off purists of all stripes, but should appeal to those who don't expect spiritual enlightenment from a bunch of rock musicians.