Tune In, Turn On
By Doug Deutsch
My sister says I’m ‘aging backwards’. Maybe she’s right; much of the music we’re listening to presently is from bands that are anything but new to today’s rock scene. Such is the case with Less Than Jake, an energetic rock/ska/pop group formed in 1992, of all places, in Gainesville, Florida (erstwhile home of Southern rock bands and the late Tom Petty). There are more than a few bands still successfully purveying the upbeat ska/rock hybrid sound; one of these, New Brunswick’s Hub City Stompers, recently played a hot set at AC’s Bourre. In both these bands, the horns add a full-bodied sound to this modern-day ska that makes even old(er) dudes like me wanna dance.
Always curious how bands got their name, that’s the first question we asked LTJ trombone player Buddy ‘Goldfinger’ Schaub in an interview this week. “The (Less Than Jake) name actually came from our old drummer, Vinnie Fiorello. His parents had an English bulldog named Jake. They treated him like the king of the house. They would bring home steak from restaurants for him, he had his own chair in the house, etc. One day, (guitarist-vocalist Chris) DeMakes and Vinnie were working on songs in his back bedroom. The dog was getting upset. So, his parents made them stop playing and they were like, ‘that’s what we should call ourselves. We’re Less Than Jake.”
LTJ’s most recent release is “Silver Linings,” their ninth studio album (December 2020). “We recorded it in (bassist Roger) Lima’s studio, the Moat House, where we’ve recorded for years,” says Schaub. “This was our first release with new drummer Matt (Yonker) who’s been working with our band on the crew since 2001. We were super-excited to do something new and then the pandemic hit. We waited for things to open back up so we could tour around its release, but eventually got tired of waiting and just put it out there. We re-released the deluxe version of the record last month on Pure Noise Records.”
How did LTJ navigate that eerie period of time when Covid screwed the pooch on everyone’s best-laid plans? “We struggled through it the best we could, like everyone else,” recalls Schaub. “Being a band where most of our income comes from playing music in front of a live audience made it a bit tough for us. We recorded a few songs remotely from each of our studios and released those “Lost at Home” sessions on our Bandcamp page. We also donated some of the proceeds to different charities for each song and played a couple of Live Stream shows that were fun as well.”
(Less Than Jake, Cliffdiver and Keep Flying, Saturday, December 10, Anchor Rock Club, 247 S. New York Ave., Atlantic City. Doors 7pm. (609) 808-4990 or anchorrockclub.com.
Bye Bye Bourre: Another Shore venue that featured original music saw its final shows take place last weekend. Bourre, opened in 2019 on New York Ave. in the Orange Loop Entertainment District, will be replaced in Spring of 2023 by high-end restaurant cardinal, formerly in Ventnor. The ending was bittersweet for Bourre promoter, Stephen Weiss, who runs NorStep Productions with Noranne Thompson and booked Bourre’s live music. “The future of the indie music scene at the Shore going forward will not look much different than it did yesterday,” says Weiss. “The indie music scene was never a building. It moved from location to location and called Bourre_ac home for the past three-and-a-half years. It would seem what we’ve built here has touched quite a few folks. For every one venue I look into, two more reach out to me. Currently we can book two places in Atlantic City, one in a different South Jersey town, and one in Philadelphia, with multiple offers to check out other spaces, two of which would keep us in Atlantic City. There’s no doubt we will have a stage within city limits to continue the music again soon.”
Anchor Rock Club showrunner Greg Mungan shares, “Rather than predicting the future of the local music scene, our goal (at ARC) is to provide a welcoming space with great sound. As a venue with a staff full of musicians, we know how much goes into writing, rehearsing and getting a live set together. We treat every show through that lens. Hopefully, we can help strengthen the local music community.”
From Music to Comedy: Pat Mircuki, who used to produce North Jersey TV show The Underground Café in the 1980’s, presents Pat’s Place 4 Comedy at Studio Space, 1112 Woodland Ave. in Somers Point, this Saturday, December 10 at 8pm. Buda the Comedian headlines. www.patsplace4comedy.com for info.
Doug is the owner/operator of Doug Deutsch Publicity Services, which since 1995 has been servicing nationally touring acts, and working record release campaigns for clients. Doug also hàs experience writing for the one time shore-based weekly publication, Whoot! He also was a team member with Chip Braymes Advertising. Doug loves bicycling and aspires to bring the Blues to Atlantic City. He can be reached at ShoreLocalDoug@gmail.com and www.facebook.com/dougdeutschpublicity.
