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One of the burgeoning army
of American punk/ska bands to gain success in
the wake of Rancid and the Dropkick Murphys' breakthrough,
Los Angeles' Less Than Jake are led by singer
Chris Demakes. The band was founded in Gainesville,
Florida in 1992 by Demakes, Shaun (bass) and Vinnie
(drums), and was actually one of the first proponents
of the punk/ska style. Roger replaced Shaun and
a brass section comprising Jessica (saxophone),
Aaron (saxophone) and Buddy (trombone) was brought
in to bolster the band's sound. They released
two lively independent label albums, Pezcore and
Losers, Kings, And Things We Don't Understand,
which continued ska's tradition of irreverence
and spontaneity. The subsequently signed a major
label deal with Capitol Records, but one of their
most endearing releases to date is the independent
Greased, a mini-album featuring eight cover versions
of songs from the Grease soundtrack. Their 1998
release Hello Rockview, featuring a line-up of
Roger, Chris, Vinnie, Buddy and Derron (saxophone),
was an attempt to establish themselves in the
mainstream. It was co-produced by Howard Benson,
whom the band met while recording a cover version
of the Partridge Family's "I Think I Love
You" for the Scream 2 soundtrack. Benson
helped deliver clarity to the band's ebullient
rock 'n' roll/ska hybrid. The best example was
the attendant single release, "History Of
A Boring Town", which received regular plays
on MTV. Although navigating a shift to the mainstream,
Less Than Jake remained conscious of their fans,
continuing to insist on a low-pricing policy on
all their albums. They broke away from Capitol
in 2000, issuing Borders & Boundaries on No
FX frontman Fat Mike's Fat Wreck Chords imprint.
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