Less Than Jake - Gig Review 25th October @ 170 Russell, Melb/Naarm VIC
Less Than Jake
170 Russell, Naarm/ Melbourne VIC
October 25th, 2024
Support: Young Offenders and The Bennies
The second law of thermodynamics states that entropy always increases. This is because entropy is a measure of disorder, and disorder naturally increases over time. It’s nature’s tax for the general thrill of moving about and being alive, and one day it’ll turn everyone and everything back into cosmic dust. We all exist as brief custodians of the cells we inhabit; a cheap kind of immortality, but watching a hot moist room of inveterate punks mosh all night to even more inveterate punks bang their heads and blow trombones on stage certainly made a case for briefly disproving this fundamental law of physics (or at least make us all not feel it’s increasing cricks, strains, breathlessness, and inflammation until the morning after… which we all currently are).
A very willing and ready crowd of ancient tour shirts and splotches of grey hair swelled early at 170 Russell. 6pm doors due to the venue becoming an EDM club from about 10 meant we could all be home in time for a Radox bath well before tomorrow started. Openers Young Offenders are only a spry decade-ish-old, so it’s nice of these young Adeladian upstarts to give us a girthy dose of immediately likeable pub-rock-punk to warm the cockles before the grizzled stalwarts took centre stage. They’re roaring live outfit that gives anthemic Japandroids and 70’s British punk noise all at once. Maybe a bit of Kingswood too. If those three references tickle your internal musical pickle, then get around this underrated local outfit soon as. They’ve been quietly doing it loudly for ages, so jump on Bandcamp while your hangover passes and buy a record. Bands need it more than ever these days with decreasing tour profit margins.
Next was everyone’s favourite pot-smoking and free-spirited party band, the inimitable The “Mother Fucking” Bennies. Despite a few turbulent and lean years of band member changes and interstate sea-changery seeing the boys almost call it a day post-Covid, this new-look Bennies still converge to bring a relentless energy and slick musicianship bundled up and flung at crowds whenever called upon, no worries. It’s as though The Bennies itself is a wandering spirit that calls upon the worthy to continue its message of free love and fun to all who need to hear it. It’s rare that a band changes all but one or two members and keeps their original acutely exciting vibe, but The Bennies haven’t lost a step.
Frontman/burgeoning Australian rock icon Anty was his usual erratic and primal self. In trademark stripy tights and amidst perpetual restless flinging about the stage, he screamed, laughed, joked, barked like a dog, ironically demanded chants that expound his band’s greatness, made dirty, dirty love to his MicroKorg (Earth’s greatest synth, don’t @ me), and generally got everyone warmed up as all fuck before Less Than Jake took the stage to give us all a big, familiar ska punk hug for 90 minutes.
The inclusion of Slayer’s 'Reign In Blood' before the manic techno drop in to crowd-favourite set closer 'Party Machine' was a real highlight. All the gargantuan new long, salt-and-pepper metal beards and double kick under a new drummer’s feet are surely the culprits. OG member/DJ SNES Mega picked up a guitar plenty during the set as well. What a renaissance man! The Bennies are officially a journeyman band and extremely unique and exciting Aussie punk export. It’s fantastic that they didn’t take the chance to fade away after so many changes and general pushback from the universe these last three or four years. The world’s better with them in it, especially when they hire some brass to play the sets as well. I feel like they’re the ALDI equivalent of Aussie punk bands; familiar, a bit weird, but almost always better than something with a brand name you’ve paid more for elsewhere. “Who’s the best band in the world?”
Less Than Jake are the fucking best. They hadn’t been here for 7 fucking years! That’s like a tenth of their whole lives! Ageist jokes aside (they’re only actually like 50ish, guys), this may have been as musically - and especially vocally – polished as I’ve ever seen our favourite fun-blasting 5-ish piece since they first played Australia in the late 90s. Pete, Buddy, Roger, Chris, and new first-ever-Aussie-gig-ever-for-the-first-ever-time drummer Matt seamlessly churned out Hello, Rockview! in its entirety. Further maintaining the album cover’s ironic 1950’s Americana aesthetic with tastefully realised cardboard cutouts on stage, the ever-hilarious and self-deprecating Floridians have live music down to an absolute science. Once Rockview was done - 'All My Friends Are Metal Heads' and 'Last One Out of Liberty City' the obvious highlights - it was time for “the canned encore” before a few choice picks like 'The Science Of Selling Yourself Short', a fun new clap-your-hands kinda song, and 'Gainesville, Rock City' sent everyone home happy and with plenty of time to get the train half-pissed and musty like the good old days.
Feeling more like a variety show performed to friends, Chris is absurdly quick-witted and casually frank with their fans. He tells tales of yore from previous decades of down under touring, playfully insults people, makes stinging light of our long-departed youth, earnestly reiterates thanks for us not forgetting the band exists after so long, lets fans he recognises sit on stage most of the whole gig, and openly admits that “A box of hair dye goes a long way” with regards to compliments from the mosh about the band’s seemingly-perpetual youthful exuberance.
Less Than Jake have done it all, seen it all, helped inspire and create a fair chunk of it, and still blow the roofs off venues on the other side of the planet this far into their truly remarkable and commendable journey. They are gracious, raucous, infectious (in a music way, not in a sex way… I think), and Buddy the Tromboner traversing the stage ceaselessly while 'boning and interpretatively dancing out every lyric to every song is nothing short of magnificent and impressive to the most acute of degrees. May we all still love what we do as much as these guys do after 30-ish years of it.
If you missed it because it’s a Friday and you were tired, or you’ve seen them before so whatever… you were wrong to do so and the man has beaten you down. Absolutely go see Less Than Jake every single time they’re in your town. You’ll have a fucking great time and live for longer. That’s just science, man. Don’t sell yourself short.
Review by Todd Gingell @gingerly_done
Less Than Jake - Hello, Rockview! Down Under Tour
with The Bennies and Young Offenders
OCT 26 - ADELAIDE - HOTTER THAN HELL FEST
OCT 27 - PERTH
OCT 29 - WOLLONGONG
OCT 30 - SYDNEY
NOV 1 - NEWCASTLE
NOV 2 - TOWNSVILLE - HOTTER THAN HELL FEST
NOV 3 - BRISBANE - HOTTER THAN HELL FEST
