Less Than Jake
HOURS before tonight’s headliner’s take to the stage, the Academy is already brimming with an excitable crowd, itching to have a good time.
Four bands and a whole lot of bad dancing later, they emerged into the Manchester night, a sea of smiles and sweaty bodies, but then you’d expect nothing less from a Less Than Jake show.
Opening act Imperial Leisure are an intriguing mix of ska, hip-hop and funk, and the slowly filling Academy is soon won over by their upbeat grooves.
Their sound is pretty unique and they are certainly causing quite a stir down in their native London town.
Next up are Birmingham’s Beat Union. Their tight and polished pop punk is pleasant enough, their set zips along nicely, lots of catchy hooks and riffage.
They certainly don’t offer anything particularly original, but they are good at what they do and would be massive right now if they were American and not Brummies. Not suited to everyone’s taste, but worth a listen.
Before the main event, we are treated to the delights of Pepper. Easily the weakest link on the bill and essentially a Sublime cover band.
They possess the same sun-kissed blend of reggae and punk, but that is unfortunately where the similarity ends.
Their set is incredibly forgettable and their stage banter, which seems to consist of emphasizing their love of beer and boobies, gets boring very quickly.
Tonight’s headliners are a different kettle of fish altogether. Ska-punk heroes Less Than Jake have refined the art of the fun time rock show and burst onto the stage , launching straight into ‘All My Best Friends Are Metalheadz’ sending the frenzied crowd into overdrive.
The whole room immediately becomes a bouncing, heaving mass, and they hardly let up for the next hour.
At first the band struggles with sub-par sound and they take a few songs to get into their stride.
Luckily, LTJ have never been about musical prowess; for these guys it’s about making energetic and upbeat tunes for their fans to jump around to, and after over a decade of touring, they have this down to a tee.
With a vast back catalogue to choose from, they play what is in effect a greatest hits package with two or three new songs thrown into the mix. Vintage ‘Jake fare like ‘Johnny Quest Thinks We’re Sellouts’ and ‘History of a Boring Town’ go down a storm with the baying mob, and the security struggled to cope with the flood of crowd surfers careering towards the stage.
The group still clearly love being up on stage and seem genuinely pleased to receive such a warm reception.
Their set goes down a storm tonight and both band and audience alike throw themselves around, right up until the last note.
Few bands can rival LTJ for pure unabashed fun, and after at least 10 years of touring, they show no sign of letting up yet.
What did you think? Have your say.
Reviewed: Wed, 19 November, 2008
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