{"id":28064,"date":"2015-09-28T07:35:31","date_gmt":"2015-09-27T21:35:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/?p=28064"},"modified":"2015-09-28T07:35:41","modified_gmt":"2015-09-27T21:35:41","slug":"chris-demakes-of-less-than-jake","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/maytherockbewithyou.com\/mtrbwy\/2015\/09\/chris-demakes-of-less-than-jake\/","title":{"rendered":"Chris DeMakes of Less Than Jake"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\n<\/a>\u201c\u2026it\u2019s kind of like we know the ten, eleven or twelve songs that we have to play that are fan favourites or so to speak, and then from there we just kind of try to sprinkle in and try to represent every era of the band and then you know try to make ourselves happy too, we like to entertain ourselves so in turn it\u2019s fun for the audience.\u201d<\/p>\n

From Bio: Playing music is about moments. A collection of great moments defines an amazing record. An avalanche of powerful moments tumbles into an engaging live show. The moment when band and fan become one and the same, the moment of interaction, is the type of moment that lasts forever. Now over twenty years into its pioneering journey, Gainesville, Fla., natives Less Than Jake have had their fair share of moments. For a band obsessed with interacting with its fans, both online and after shows; for a band that is so concerned with making sure the fan gets the perfect experience, with well-known hijinks in every live performance; and for a band that is so passionate when writing new music, this begins to seem like an even longer amount of time. A lot of moments add up over two decades \u2013 teenagers grow into men over two decades \u2013 dare we say, things change?<\/p>\n

In wonderful Florida we caught up with Chris of Less Than Jake to talk about the bands return to Australia for their shows with Reel Big Fish, as well as new music, changes over time and much more\u2026<\/p>\n

You\u2019re of course heading back to Australia with Reel Big Fish, such a great pairing, what can we expect from what is sure to be a fun night?<\/strong>
\nLots of familiar songs if you\u2019re a fan and just high energy, and just a really good time.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s just what we love down here, have you found that the Australian audiences really get into your shows?<\/strong>
\nI\u2019d like to think so, you guys are a crazy bunch, you guys drink a little more than the rest of the world so that helps *laughs*<\/p>\n

Being to Australia before and playing festivals like Soundwave, it always interests me in asking what for you is the biggest difference in playing a festival compared to club shows?<\/strong>
\nYou know I always say that when you\u2019re doing the festivals for two to three weeks that you want to be back in the clubs cause you\u2019re bored of the festivals, and conversely when you\u2019re doing the clubs you\u2019re like after two or three weeks or a month of that you want to be doing the festivals *laughs* so the grass is always greener, but they\u2019re both great in their own way.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve been doing this co-headline tour with Reel Big Fish across The States to great reviews, what\u2019s been the craziest thing to happen on the tour so far?<\/strong>
\nOh geez, let me think, probably nothing crazy just as you know I don\u2019t use the word nostalgia in a bad light but it\u2019s like everybody that listened to most of these bands in the nineties, they\u2019re back now, it\u2019s like they might have taken a few years off and had families and this and that and now it\u2019s like \u2018Oh my God Reel Big Fish and Less Than Jake are coming, it\u2019s an event, we\u2019re gonna go see it\u2019 and it\u2019s sold out almost every night and it\u2019s absolutely crazy, it\u2019s a lot of fun.<\/p>\n

With so many albums under your belt, how do you go about putting a set list together for shows these days?<\/strong>
\nThat\u2019s a good question, it\u2019s kind of like we know the ten, eleven or twelve songs that we have to play that are fan favourites or so to speak, and then from there we just kind of try to sprinkle in and try to represent every era of the band and then you know try to make ourselves happy too, we like to entertain ourselves so in turn it\u2019s fun for the audience.<\/p>\n

Being here a number of times before, besides the shows, what\u2019s your favourite thing to do in Australia?<\/strong>
\nFavourite thing in Australia\u2026 that\u2019s a really good question, probably when we went to Darwin one time because it was just so far removed from anything I\u2019ve ever done in my life so that was one thing, it wasn\u2019t like I do that every time\u2026 Probably I just love how laid back everything is, everywhere you go, I love hitting the beach when I\u2019m there.<\/p>\n

Well you\u2019ve been to Darwin more times than I have so\u2026<\/strong>
\n*laughs* Yeah it was pretty intense.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been almost two years since \u2018See The Light\u2019 have you guys had time to even think about a new album or new music?<\/strong>
\nNo we\u2019ve all been compiling ideas separately and we\u2019re gonna start working on something this Fall here in The States when we\u2019ve wrapped up touring. We\u2019ve been pretty much on the road since the record came out non-stop touring so we haven\u2019t had much of a chance about thinking of getting into the studio. We\u2019ve always come home, decompressed, got our ideas together and worked on a record.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ve been doing this now for twenty three years, and a lot has changed in the music world in that time, what for you has been the most notable change in the way that the band works and or makes music now compared to those early days?<\/strong>
\nWow, well you can fix my horrible out of tune vocals now very easy, so that\u2019s changed *laughs* just the technology aspect of it, we started pre-internet essentially so everything was different. If you wanted to get a response from a band member they had to physically write you back, put it in the post and send it to you, it wasn\u2019t instantaneous. So I\u2019d like to think that we\u2019ve kept up with the technology and that\u2019s one of the reasons we\u2019re still here, we never shunned it.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s jump back to \u2018Pezcore\u2019 it turned 20 this year! Do you have a great story or memory about what it was like releasing that debut album back in 1995?<\/strong>
\nYeah actually I had quit college or university to do the band and my parents weren\u2019t too happy to say the least, and my Dad was in North Carolina visiting my brother who was off at college there and he went into a record store and saw our CD. That to me was like \u2018we\u2019re a real band now, we have a CD\u2019 because back then if you had a CD you were something because everyone had cassettes and you couldn\u2019t just burn a CD really quickly, so my Dad called me and gave me some vindication of what I was doing, that was great.<\/p>\n

Then you guys reissued it back in 2002?<\/strong>
\nYeah I think we\u2019ve reissued it twice actually *laughs*<\/p>\n

So no plans for a twentieth anniversary release because well no need for a third?<\/strong>
\nYeah that was probably the reason we didn\u2019t do it, there was nothing left to tack onto it, there was no new bonus tracks or anything special to do for it so we kinda left it alone and haven\u2019t really had the chance to do anything to market because we\u2019ve been on the road.<\/p>\n

So let\u2019s talk about Ska and Ska Punk or whatever we want to call the genre, there are still a few bands left and still going but a lot of bands did come and go. What do you think it is about that style of music that people really still dig these days?<\/strong>
\nI think ultimately for us and Reel Big Fish it came down to the songs, the songs and the lyrics they touched people in some way. You know Ska was kinda looked at as this goofy kinda fun genre that came and went, but the bands that had songs I feel, oh and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, the bands that had songs are the ones that are still doing it. And the fact that it\u2019s a fun genre, you can\u2019t help but have fun when you go to one of our shows.<\/p>\n

Lastly, let\u2019s look ahead to the future, so finish this sentence for me, in 2016, Less Than Jake will\u2026<\/strong>
\nPut out a new record *laughs*<\/p>\n

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Catch Less Than Jake and Reel Big Fish on tour in Australia at the following dates:<\/strong><\/p>\n

WEDNESDAY 30 SEPTEMBER<\/strong> – MELBOURNE, PRINCE BANDROOM \u2013 18+
\nwww.oztix.com.au<\/a><\/p>\n

THURSDAY 1 OCTOBER<\/strong> – MELBOURNE, PRINCE BANDROOM \u2013 18+ SOLD OUT<\/span><\/strong><\/s><\/p>\n

FRIDAY 2 OCTOBER<\/strong> – SYDNEY, MAX WATTS \u2013 18+
\nwww.oztix.com.au<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0www.maxwatts.com.au<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0www.eventopia.co<\/a><\/p>\n

SATURDAY 3 OCTOBER<\/strong> – BRISBANE, MAX WATTS \u2013 18+
\nwww.oztix.com.au<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0www.maxwatts.com.au<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0www.eventopia.co<\/a><\/p>\n

SUNDAY 4 OCTOBER<\/strong> – GOLD COAST, COOLANGATTA HOTEL \u2013 18+
\nwww.oztix.com.au<\/a><\/p>\n

Presented by Soundwave Touring<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Essential Information<\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n

From:<\/strong> Gainesville, Florida, USA<\/p>\n

Band members:<\/strong> Chris DeMakes (vocals, guitar), Roger Lima (vocals, bass), Vinnie Fiorello (drums, lyrics), Buddy Schaub (trombone) and Peter “JR” Wasilewski (saxophone).<\/p>\n

Website:\u00a0<\/strong> http:\/\/www.lessthanjake.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n

Latest release:<\/strong> See The Light \u2013 (out now)<\/p>\n

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