”Less Than Jake have lost their touch. They’ll never top Hello Rockview. Being on a major label changed them as a band.”

We’ve all heard the constant stream of allegations, accusations, and diatribes against the Gainesville, Florida-based band now in its sixteenth year. Finished with their stint on Sire/Warner Bros. Records, they started their own label (Sleep It Off Records) to release their seventh studio album, GNV FLA, the title an ode to their hometown.

Titillating trombone slides, warbling guitar riffs, and even the addition of a trumpet (Scott Klopfenstein from Reel Big Fish) allow GNV FLA to explode into the top half of Less Than Jake’s discography with little effort. The songs are in your face, catchy, and full of skankable goodness. Some may say the band has “returned” to an earlier sound, but it’s just the product of ditching glossy overproduction and continuing to write a mix of social commentary, nostalgic witticisms, and horn-happy sing-alongs.

Less Than Jake have been doing the whole, “we’re a band thing” for longer than most of those reading this review have probably been into this whole “scene.” They released one of the best albums I overplayed during my high-school years (Hello Rockview); and they continue to get shit from kids who can’t get over the fact that they won’t release the same album over and over. What one needs to remember is that Less Than Jake have proved their not a flash in the pan band. They’ve been writing hit songs for years. While it’s hard for me to picture myself listening to some of the pop-bands I enjoy at this stage of my life in 15 years – I can totally see myself still breaking out Less Than Jake albums well into my years.