By snoadmin
The Anaheim House of Blues took a glimpse back at the ’90s ska movement as the Florida-based band Less Than Jake brought in a nearly sold-out crowd Monday night.
The group said they are frequently mistaken as an Orange County ska band because of their signature sound and a supposed hook-up between trombone player Buddy Schaub and Gwen Stefani back in 1989. The band has been on tour promoting their latest album “TV/EP” and were enthused to be in California as they have been battling the frigid storms back east.
“TV/EP” is an interesting new album for the band. All the tracks are covers of popular TV show theme songs and commercials. Schaub explained that the band got this idea to rip-off TV tunes a few of years ago when they began to reflect on other covers they did, like the “Dukes of Hazard” theme.
Before playing the theme song to “Scooby Doo,” off of “TV/EP,” frontman Chris Demakes told the audience, “This next song is about a bunch of people who got stoned and took a bunch of acid in a van.”
Plumes of smoke were saturated with the strong scent of weed coming from the mosh pit and Demakes quickly recognized the stench.
“They’ll toss you out for smoking cigarettes, but you can get away with something illegal,” Demakes said sarcastically. “There’s no more need for Californians to go to a sketchy dude’s house to buy weed anymore. I’m sure it’s for your headache … right.”
Less Than Jake played a majority of older hits, as they all seemed to agree that a band’s best material generally comes from the early days song writing. Some of their performed hits included “Look What Happened,” “Plastic Cup Politics,” “That’s Why They Call It a Union” and “The Science of Selling Yourself Short.”
Toward the end of the show, Less Than Jake played a request for a devoted fan. The song was called “Pete Jackson is Getting Married.” Demakes said “I had an interview before the show with a guy… and he’s getting married soon and requested this song.”
The band played until around 11:30 p.m. and ended with a three-song encore. The audience repeatedly yelled “Less Than Jake” and Demakes returned to finished the evening off with a guitar/saxophone duo of “Rest of My Life,” complete with articifial snow sprinkling onto the audience and stage.
Some of the band members returned to toss set lists and guitar picks to the motley group of fans, ranging from tiny popper middle school kids to old salty punk rockers.
Upon leaving the stage, Demakes gave thanks to the audience for its high energy and for purchasing tickets to a show on a Monday night.
For more information about Less Than Jake, visit lessthanjake.com.
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