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| Less Than JakeHello Rockview1998 Capitol 
 Review by: Rob Haineault See others by this writer Only registered users can post comments 
 
Published on July 17th 2001
Hey Y'all, well what can I say about this release by Less Than Jake? Well, other then the fact that this is the best ska album I have ever heard, not much I guess. Less Than Jake are in my opinion the best ska band in the world. In fact, Less Than Jake is the band that got me into ska. As for this release "Hello Rockview," it is my personal favoite album by Less Than Jake. You may ask, what makes Less Than Jake so different from all those other ska bands? That's easy, because they are Less Than Jake. As for this album, the first track sets the mood perfectly for this record; fast, catchy, melodic and fun. Yes, fun. The fact is, this is a fun cd to listen to. Not only are the songs great and catchy, it is also fun because there is a comic inside the jacket of this record which shows all the lyrics in it, and it sorta tells a story. As for my favorite songs: My favorite of them all would have to be "Scott Farcas Takes It On Te Chin." It is so catchy, it makes you wanna press repeat on that song, but the thing is, all the other songs are like that also. There is not one bad song on this release, although there are better songs then other (for example "All My Best Friends Are Metalheads," "History Of A Boring Town," "Big Crash.") All in all this is an amazing ska cd. And I really don't consider it ska, of course it has the horns and the ska upstrokes, but there are also some traces of punk in it too. Less Than Jake is the best ska act around, and this release "Hello Rockview" proves it, I suggest to anyone, even if they don't like ska or punk to buy it, that is how amazing it is, trust me, you will not be disapointed!
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i love this album. this is the band that first really got me into ska. They way they blend medolic punk riffs with the clever use of trombones amazes me. everytime i listen to this cd it takes me back to the days of playing THPS and hearing "All my Best Friends are Metalheads" I'm gonna agree with this. This is also the first Punk/ska album I heard, and I fell in love with it. People write way too much about LTJ, when you have to realize that they aren't going to make the same records over and over through their entire career. Look at Blink-182, they had songs based on sex jokes and boobs. Then they released their last album which sounded completely different, and people hated them for it. Fans just need to realize you can't write the same songs your entire life. As you mature more in life, your music's going to follow. haha thats trueVVVV and then there came in with the out crowd... a punk band that makes me smile. Totally rare. Totally brilliant. Pulled this bad boy out of the vault the other day and let me tell you this is easily one of the best punk / ska albums of all time. The only thing better than this CD is seeing LTJ live. yer yer so this is the next step from losing streak...proving LTJ can beat themselves once again this is in some way the best less than jake album to date, this owns the classic all in punk/ska whilst gaining a full sound quality and catchy tunes, this is the most fun less than jake cd ever, and fun is what its all about...isnt it?? you dont want LTJ to hit back with an emo album do ya?? well this will remind you just how far away these guys are from that!!! which is a good thing, they do their job and dont moan about it, this cd has the happy happy happy feeling or hit whoever cheated with your girlfriend over the head with a spade feeling...either way theres no crying in a corner with blood from your wrists ha ha far from it! I like this album, but their best song has to be Son Of Dick. That song is lengendary. That or We Go Together. Both ar good song's either way. Best Song on "Hello Rockview" has to be History Of A Boring Town. Crappest song in my opion is the Theme Song For 'H' Street. Anyways album in my opion gets 10 / 10. God, I love this CD. cool record, every song make me want 2 dance, especially history of a borin town. actually prefer borders and boundries, but i'll give this 5 stars as it came with losing streak free! yes thats free! 1 one the advantages of living in a shitty asshole of country like the uk (it always rains) Great Album. Hello Rockview is by far the best LTJ's album, second is Losing streak. Please don't say that Loser kings and things we don't understand is their best, and the best ska album, the sound quality suck ! even Border and boundaries is better, and Pezcore too. "Losers, Kings, and Things i Don't Understand" is pretty sucky IMHO. Best ska album in recent years? Not even close. Try Hepcat's "Right on Time" or the Slackers "The Question" or even the Toasters "DLTBGYD". I do think that "Losing Streak" by Less Than Jake is one of the best punk-ska albums around though. "Hello Rockview" is good too. that guy's right. losers, kings, and things we don't understand is probably my favorite ltj album. i've even heard most of their vinyls since i've lived in gainesville my whole life and less than jake was one of (if not my first) show. losing streak is an awesome cd, and this one is pretty good as well. i wouldn't go as far as to say they are the best ska band in the world, but they're pretty good. if you can see them in a club atmosphere it's so much better than at the warped tour. Enough of you uneducated Less than Jake fans! The best LTJ album, and probably best ska album out in recent years, is a cd called Losers, Kings, and Things i Don't Understand. Most of you probably haven't heard it but it's out there. One place i always see it is a Less than Jake's shows. If you don't own it and are a TRUE LTJ fan i highly recommend you buy it. However, if you were really big into Hello Rockview and Borders and Boundaries, a.k.a. the less ska albums, then you may not like this cd and are really missing out on some of LTJ's best work. Oh just so you non-true fans know the order of LTJ's cd from best to worst is: jesus...these days you can't say one thing about a so called "ska" band without starting a war...less than jake is a ska band...there last two releases "Hello Rockview" and "Boarders & Boundries" have sounded more like a punk album with horns though...i still love both albums..."Pezcore" and "Losing Streak" are definately proof of less than jake being one kick ass ska band... Dude, I also said that I dont consider them really ska, but I said "they are the best ska band in the world" probably becasue they are labelled ska. If you go in a record store, if you wanna find Less Than Jake albums, they r in the ska section, that is what they are labelled even though I find they are mostly punk. We will say what we want in regards to their "skaness". Considering the reviewer referred to them constantly as a ska band, "the best ska band in the world" to be precise, we have an obligation to correct him. I dunno.I was somewhat bored with all that comic crap which i tought was cool at first.The most boring thing about LTJ in general is boring lyrics, they just hit you in the head and make you depressed.They are much better live. shut the fuck up with your "real ska" "not real ska" lines. Just listen to these guys and enjoy the cd. I don't know why everyone seems to love Losing Streak so much...maybe I'm biased because "Rockview" was the first LTJ record I bought. I have been a huge fan since the day I bought it and I think that they have improved with every single album. Losing Streak, while classic, varies little when it comes to the tempo and overall sound of the songs. I think that "Hello Rockview," and even more so "Borders and Boundaries," show how many different types of songs LTJ can come up with. And by the way, I like the odd "synth" horn sound on this album. Oh well, it's all about personal taste, I guess. This is not ska. Nor is it very listenable. Great album from a great band (with an awesome live show by the way). But, it doesn't hold a candle to Losing Streak. not true ska, but one of the best cd's you can buy. i just saw them at warped and all i can say is CLASSIC! I'll go see LTJ anytime they are anywhere near where i live.- fathead Good solid release, but nowhere near the brilliance of Pezcore. I don't really think of LTJ as a ska band. Their music is all written with punk feeling and emotion, its really more like ska-core or punk with horns. Kinda like Snuff. I love this CD, but it barely qualifies as ska. Horns do not a ska band make. I love this fuckin cd! I think this and "Losing Streak" are their best albums. This is NOT LTJ's best album. While it is better then "Border's and Boundaries", it doesn't even hold a candle to "Losing Streak". The production on this album isn't that great either. The horns sound like a keyboard. The only redeeming quality of this album is "last of the great american sharpshooters" (I hope that's the full title). Go buy Losing Streak. |
