Anthem

Florida's Less Than Jake flies the banner of the New Punk South with its Sire debut album Anthem. The CD is enhanced with the video for 'She's Gonna Break Soon' & more plus the bonus track 'Surrender'. 2003.

The firecrackers on the sleeve give a good idea of what to expect on this Florida ska-punk group's third major-label album after a brief sojourn back in the indie world. Horns, chugging guitars, and crashing rhythms mesh to create a high-energy racket that refuses to subside until the band has rolled out its raucous closing cover version of Cheap Trick's "Surrender." The label turbulence does little to affect its angular wit, as focus returns to the heady party vibes of the group's hugely successful major label debut, Losing Streak: pogo-driven "Best Wishes to Your Black Lungs" and "That's Why They Call It a Union" are standard-issue Less Than Jake. As with the band's other releases, the music inspires clear feelings of love and hate. --Aidin Vaziri