It rules to hear Less Than Jake for the first time in your life - it almost makes me weep. To be round-housed with those jerky ska riffs bouncing along a wall of distorted, breakneck pop on the first listen, all dirtied with punk guitars and polished with sharp horns, all so irresistible it demands that you get out of your seat and shake your ass like a fool.

Losing Streak is the new Less Than Jake album and yes, it is their first for Capitol, or any major label for that matter. Produced by Michael Rosen and Less Than Jake, Losing Streak reveals the band's ability to mix raw, hardcore-oriented guitar riffs with ska's uptempo horns and rhythms. Although several TV theme songs were considered for the album, (they have recorded a vast repertoire of TV themes in the past including takes of Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley), all sixteen songs are Less Than Jake originals. "The Magic 8 Ball" was used to decide the fate of the song order.

You say you don't know Less Than Jake? Then it's time you got yourself aquainted. Having risen from the fertile punk rock grounds of Gainesville, Florida, a college town boasting a thriving scene long before MTV or mainstream radio ever got wind of the pop-punk phenomenon, Less Than Jake - or LTJ, as they're known around these parts - have evolved into a hybrid monster boasting the genetic heritage of, say, The Toasters crossed with The Ramones, or maybe The Specials sired by Screeching Weasel. Their blend of ska- punk, thoroughly distinct from other progenitors of the genre (i.e. Operation Ivy, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones), meshes three-chord exuberance with high impact brass power, leaving kids high stepping seemingly anywhere they play. Their live shows, which have taken place everywhere from 15,000 seat arenas to condemnation-ready divas (for acts as varied as Green Day, Bootsy Collins and Voodoo Glowskulls), usually end with an array of stuffed animals in the clutches of an army of worn, sweaty, happy, danced-out, youths, many chanting LTJ's patented hook-laden choruses with throats cracked hoarse, most of whom exhibit sprayed silly string dangling from their hair - all staples of the LTJ live experience.

Fueled from the start by the band's passions - guitarist/vocalist Chris' infatuation with early '80s anything (particularly The Dukes of Hazzard and Quiet Riot),and drummer Vinnie's rabid obsession with the Pez universe. - LTJ formed as a three-piece in the summer of 1992, adding horns about six months later. The name itself, for those unfamiliar with esoteric North American vernacular, means "not up to par," the word "jake" is a synonym for "cool," "swell," "fine," etc. It also refers to Vinnie's bulldog Jake, who as the story goes, was weaned on Red Lobster meals while Vinnie was fed nothing but TV dinners while growing up; hence Vinnie 's been "less than Jake" for years.

Since their inception, LTJ has maintained a born-from-the-mud-up DIY ethic, booking their own tours, producing their own records, making their own t-shirts, stickers and accouterments, leaving creative control in nobody's hands but their own. In that time they've been featured on a whopping 23 different releases, ranging from home spun 7-inch platters to international CD compilations, culminating in their full length debut, "Pezcore" on Dill Records, selling 8,000 in its first four months. While prospering independently, the band landed an amiable deal with Capitol Records, giving LTJ the freedom to continue their DIY pursuits while enjoying the distribution a major label offers.

From here, we could bombard you with the impressive critical praise LTJ has garnered, ranging from laudatory rants in the pages of purist hardcore zine Maximum Rock 'N' Roll to the selection of LTJ as the Band of the Year by Gainesville's alternative monthly Moon Magazine. We could continue to fill this bio with even more hyperbolic propaganda than we already have, and try our best to convince you that Less Than Jake are the coolest thing since Vienna wieners. But now that you've read the proverbial writing on the wall, rather than waste your time any further in print, we trust that you'll do something far more beneficial for your soul: throw this paper to the wayside, turn the volume way up and dive head first into the sonic playground that is Less Than Jake.

I sure as hell wish I was in your shoes when you do.

LESS THAN JAKE

Roger -- bass, vocals

Buddy -- trombone

Chris -- vocals, guitar

Vinnie -- drums

Derron -- barisax