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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Best of the Best, January 2, 2005
I will admit, I am not your die hard, been there from the beginning Less Than Jake fan. However, I have turned into a very big fan of theirs, despite only discovering them after hearing "History of a Boring Town" off of "Hello Rockview" and not purchasing my first CD from them until the release of "Anthem." Since then, though, I've acquired "Hello Rockview," "Losing Streak," "B Is for B-Sides," and now, "Borders and Boundaries." Out of all these, "Borders and Boundaries" is the one that stands above the rest, showing off all sides of the Less Than Jake greatness while still maintaining its own unique flair. As other reviews have said, this disc blends all the things we've come to love about these guys: the horns, the humor, the punk, the ska, and does all this while maturing both lyrically and musically.
This album has a cleaner, more well produced feel to it than "Losing Streak," but still has enough rawness to it to help it remain organic. Many of the songs have been slowed up just a bit from the traditional punk speed the band typically uses, but it does this in the right manner, not merely slowing them down for commercial appeal, but to use tempo changes in the right places in order to create a more well rounded song. That's not to say the guys have gone soft though. Songs such as "Faction," "Mr. Chevy Celebrity," and "Pete Jackson Is Getting Married" definitely keep things from becoming too slow and monotonous. The slower (this really isn't a good term, as none of the songs are actually slow, just some aren't as fast as others) songs actually manage to be the real gems though, such as the tracks "Is This Thing On?" and "Last Hour of the Last Day of Work," which also both contain some of the best lyrics on the entire record. And of course, the much loved horn section makes it most evident appearance in what is probably the most well known song on the record, "Gainesville Rock City."
The best tracks on this record, in my opinion, are "Last Hour of the Last Day Work" (think what would be the theme song for the movie "Office Space"), "Gainesville Rock City" (about life on the road away from home), and "Magnetic North" (being somewhere where you can't stand the people who are there, but realize you're just like them). Of course all those are merely my own interpretations; look up the lyrics for yourself if you're really interested. Either way, all you need to know is that if you're a Less Than Jake fan, you need this album. If you're a punk/ska fan, you need this album. Actually, if you merely like good music, you need this album.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Less Than Jake's done it again, October 27, 2000
By A Customer
Let's see, where do I start. This is a CD which I liked immediately as I put it into my CD player. This doesn't necessarily mean that all the songs are of superior quality, but they are definately catchy and fun to listen to. One thing I've found about Less Than Jake is that their lyrics tend to be much better than those of other ska bands I listen to. (although LTJ is not necessarily ska..their inability to be defined is definately an interesting trait.) This CD proves to be no different lyrics-wise..not exactly profound, but interesting, for sure. However, Less Than Jake appears to be phasing out the horns in their songs. I was dissapointed to hear that most of the songs on this CD have the main riffs played by guitars with horns mostly in the chorus of the song. This is not because I'm some "ska purist" and I'm mad because LTJ is drifting away from that sound, it's simply because i've always liked horns and I thought LTJ's horn riffs were superb on their CDs in the past. BUT, the songs on this CD are just as catchy as ever, fun to listen to, and Chris and the others' vocals are in top form. (although there's a couple songs on this CD which the beginning of which are sung almost ballad-style..which I don't like as much) However, I'd give this CD somewhere between 3 + 4 stars..It's a little different than their other CDs, but very good nonetheless, and definately worth buying..(especially if you've read this far through my rambling). Less Than Jake is always evolving and always changing their sound, and it's exciting to see where they'll go next.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very Good, But, October 26, 2000
Borders and Boundaries is a very good album, but it is not typical Less Than Jake. The album is slower than the others, and not as upbeat. If you're like me, and have liked Less Than Jake for a long time, you probably won't like this album as much (but I'd buy it anyway).
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