Album Review: Silver Linings by Less Than Jake

Less Than Jake just released it’s latest album, Silver Linings, on December 11th. It’s been 7 years since the SKA Punk band from Gainesville released its last album, See The Light, and the timing couldn’t be more perfect. Less Than Jake is Chris DeMakes on guitar, Roger Lima on Bass and Vocals, Buddy Schaub on Trombone, Peter “JR” Wasilewski on Sax, and Matt Yonker on Drums.

With the holidays approaching and the uncertainty in the upcoming months, what is needed is an album to listen to and let go of all the negatively. This is exactly what this album delivers.

The first song, “The High Cost of Living”, immediately lifts the spirits with guitars blazing and brass and woodwinds blaring. DeMakes encourages a positive attitude in the chorus singing “When things aren’t going my way, there’s only one thing left to say…..it’ll be alright….I found my paradise”.

DeMakes, Lima, and Wasilewski wrote all the lyrics on the albums. “We allowed ourselves to be vulnerable,” offers Wasilewski. “In the past, previous records’ lyrics were about leaving a specific place or time. This is more about the departures in our personal lives: family, friends, relationships. We’ve never really explored that side. With this record, we tried to pull back that curtain. We’re showing some fragility in a time when people seem so hardened”.

“Anytime and Anywhere” has a Blink-182 vibe to it. The song makes you want to get on your feet and start dancing. Lima shares “This song is sort of a shout out to the good times when you’re actually in the ‘silver’ parts of your life or a relationship. It’s a reminder to stop and smell the flowers when there happen to be some flowers to smell… because good times fly by when you’re living them. Cherish those moments and the people in your life that are there for you through thick and thin.”

My favorite song on the album is “Dear Me”. It has a catchy chorus that has you singing along with it. Speaking about the song saxophonist Peter “JR” Wasilewski shares: “I wrote this song as a tribute to a few special people in my life who are no longer around. What it is like to reach the impasse of where words can’t convey emotions. This is my internal struggle to understand their internal struggle.”

Silver Linings is a refreshing album which puts a smile on your face. It’s about looking at the positive rather than the negative. “We hope that the record transports you,” Wasilewski resigns. “We’ve always hoped our music takes listeners from the troubles of the world. Nowadays, that very act seems to be more important. Once you turn your phone and your TV off and venture outside with a mask, and actually talk to someone else, you realize that the world is not the worst place ever. We hope the takeaway from this album is that there is always a light at the end of the tunnel. It’s not that hard—it’s just easier to be downtrodden.”

I was born and raised in the Midwest but always dreamed of the West Coast. Whenever I visit L.A. on business, the first thing I do after getting off the plane is grab a rental car, pop a CD in the player and head to Pacific Coast Highway to cruise along the coast with the music blaring. Silver Linings is a perfect album to sing along to while cruising the coast, enjoying the view.

It’s almost the end of the year and this album has a good chance of making my favorite albums of the year list. Silver Linings is now available on Apple Music and Spotify and other popular streaming services.

Track Listing
The High Cost of Low Living
Lie to Me
Keep on Chasing
Anytime and Anywhere
The Test
Dear Me
Monkey Wrench Myself
King of the Downside
Lost at Home
Move
Bill
So Much Less

Post by Scott Raymer (Website | Instagram | Facebook)

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