‘Call To Arms’ opens with a dirty bass riff, in a similar vein to their classic ‘Last One Out Of Liberty City’ but leads into the more straightforward, sunshine-baked punk of their last few records. It kicks the EP off nicely with some classic Less Than Jake hooks, including Chris’ “woah-ohs” and horns backing an anthemic chorus, but it lacks some of the surprise or punch of previous album-openers.

‘Whatever The Weather’ completely changes tack and heads down the reggae route. Roger’s bass is fuzzy and takes up a big portion of the soundscape. The guitar is scattier and the horns are given freedom to play around the song. It skanks along well but the chorus is disappointingly restrained and the breakdown loses itself by trying too many dynamics.

The punk sound is pulled back out with ‘Bomb Drop’. It kicks straight into high gear and the singers take turns on the mic well. The chorus is a reminder that Roger’s voice is ageing well and he’s still capable of hitting those high notes. However, again, the breakdown sends the song off track and outstays its welcome. At three minutes, it actually feels too long and unnecessarily padded.

It’s a recurring theme that a slow tune is followed by a faster one but, at the midway point of the EP, they start to drag. ‘Welcome To My Life’ repeats the reggae/dub sound but plods rather than skanks. ‘Good Sign’ is reminiscent of the latter half of 2000’s ‘Borders and Boundaries’ and blasts powerfully positive vibes, but isn’t able to hold a candle to what it emulates.

‘Years Of Living Dangerously’ is the most experimental song of the bunch. The slower pace returns but Chris throws a great guitar riff over it that highlights their love of classic metal. Again, it’s a touch too long but it’s a cohesive song that signals there’s still room for them to tread new paths.

The EP closes out with ‘Things Change’ which is a bit all over the place. A discordant crescendo of horns and guitar opens proceedings but it sounds uncomfortable. It gives way to a pacy verse by Chris, backed by fuzzy bass, which creates a darker tone. Yet, the chorus is a down-tempo anthem by Roger pulling out all the high notes and it’s much greater than the verse. There’s two songs fighting for dominance here but, thankfully, the better one wins out at the end.

‘Sound The Alarm’ is an EP that juxtaposes two sides of the same Less Than Jake coin. One is faster and punkier while the other takes its time to find a ska groove. The problem is, the coin keeps flipping and struggles to decide which way to land. None of the songs are bad but they have just been done much better on their other releases. There’s promise that their new home at Pure Noise Records, alongside Gnarwolves and Boston Manor, will inject some freshness into the Less Than Jake sound, but it’s not quite there yet. 

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Aerial Salad kicked things off with a bouncing throwback to the heyday of pop-punk but with an angrier, more serious head on their shoulders. Across their set of three-minute songs they blended elements of skate, ska and 90s revival. Lyrically, they sat more towards Bad Religion than Blink 182 and pointed fingers at the powers that be. All in all, a good opening set from a band still in their infancy.

The Crash Mats, a ska-influenced trio from Oldham, kicked up the energy levels with short songs about wrestling, chip shops and how terrible their home town is. There was a swagger about them that can only come from somebody who’s half-cut but they kept the music incredibly tight. At times, it was madcap fun fast-paced punk and the ‘Royal Rumble’ was an absolute tune. It revelled in nostalgia for early 90s WWF and the stabbing guitar solos were brilliant. Definitely worth checking out if they’re around your way.

A Fish Called Bastard’s set was something of a celebration for the release of their debut record, ‘One Beat Behind’, which they admitted had taken a long time to complete. The nine-piece ska collective just about squeezed onto the stage but left Jen and Cait, their vocalists, to roam the floor.  Anyone who knows the history of UK ska will be aware of the likes of King Prawn, Capdown and Sonic Boom Six. AFCB slot somewhere between them but the trio of horns makes the sound that much bigger. There were points where some of the songs dragged but it was a pretty solid set.

Wonk Unit know how to please and throw a curveball. Most bands open with a barnstormer to get the blood pumping. Nope, say Wonk. Perennial favourite ‘Horses’ had people gently swaying to the plight of being a pony in a cold field but that was just the warm-up. ‘Mr Splashy’ got a good airing with ‘Awful Jeans’, ‘Silly Voices’ and ‘We Are The England’ proving that catchy choruses will always be winners.

The band’s singer, Alex, is one of UK punk’s (and punk in general) greatest frontmen. His onstage banter and honesty is second to none. At times he simply says lyrics straight, channeling the spirit of William Shatner and, at others, he indulges us with observations and tales. He’s consistently hilarious and it’s helped by his endearing Southern swagger. He is a shepherd to the Wonk flock.

Over the course of nearly 20 songs, including an “oh, shit” moment when they realise they’ve left ‘Go Easy’ off the setlist, all the classics are ticked off: ‘I Love My Nagging Wife’, ‘Guts’, ‘Lewisham’, ‘Rambo’ and ‘Kings Road Sporting Heroes’.

Wonk Unit are one of the best British live bands for sheer fun and crowd involvement. Find them and see them.

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Easily the standout of the six songs is ‘All Hell Broke Loose’. It surges straight into top gear with some pounding drums and desperate vocals that sound like they’re teetering on the edge of breaking point. Its reminiscent of early AFI by sheer intensity and wouldn’t seem out of place on ‘The Art of Drowning’. Though the pace eases off during the break, it’s a respite from the speed but not the intensity.

‘Square One’ veers more towards the traditional and brighter sound of punk. It’s faster and bouncier, with a killer solo that doesn’t seem borne out of ego but to add depth to the weaving vocal melodies.

‘Two Steps Back’ is in much the same vein and ensures there’s a consistency to proceedings. It also highlights just how much weight a chunky bass can add to a song. During the breakdown, the rhythm section ensures there’s a solid footing for the guitar to climb back up with staccato notes. It’s a brilliant demonstration of just how big a sound can be made by just three musicians.

Colt 45’s vision and ambitions for long-term diversity is best shown on ‘What You See Is What You Get’; restrained, spiralling riffs that are backed by ghosted piano notes before building up to an epic chorus. It shows they’re forward-thinking punks but it may be the one song that is perhaps a bit too different for die-hard, ‘all punk, all the time’ types to listen to. It’s the closest the band get to more traditional stadium rock but it works well within the EP setting.

‘Snakes and Ladders’ is a triumphant EP that showcases a good, British punk band in ascendancy. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see some of these songs end up re-recorded for a breakthrough album in the near future.

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Why have you chosen a set from London Astoria in 2001 as the basis for a live album?

We played a three show residency there. That particular show was the first show was the last night. Each one of those shows were sold out. That was something we were blown away by. We sold out three Londons shows. We just happened to have some stuff to record with so we thought ‘why not?’

The UK and, in particular, London, just seems to have a great vibe for the band. Even to this day, the UK is still passionate about the band and we’re still passionate about the fans that come to see us play. As a thank you, it’s like ‘here’s this live record’ because it was from a special period in time.

A lot of those people are still fans and we’re fans of the venue. It has a place for them in their memories in better and cooler times. A lot of those people went on to university or got real jobs and started families. This is just a really cool time capsule that we weren’t meaning to do but just took the opportunity.

We used the opportunity to record it without any real thought as to what we’d do with it. So when it came time to do the live thing, we didn’t want to do something now, so we looked back into the time capsule.

The thing about the record is that what you hear is what was recorded. There’s no studio trickery. There’s mistakes and joking, everything that goes into a Less Than Jake show is there. It’s a moment in time that we’re putting out on vinyl. We’re thankful for London and for the memories.

What do you remember from the gig?

Man, I just remember how loud it was. Every song; you hear it. It’s maximum volume going over the PA. I remember playing those shows and it being loud and hot. It was a very cool moment.

Were there any other shows you considered for the live treatment?

There were a lot of contenders but this was the one.

Would you consider doing more of them?

Maybe, we’ll see how it goes with this before we look at that type of material but we have a lot of it. We have different phases of the band; from when we first started to where we are now. We’ll put this out and we’ll see how it’s greeted.

What are some of your favourite live albums?

I only have one live album that I listen to…maybe two. The Descendents’ “Liveage!” is one of them and the other is, not so much an album but releases of songs, but Iron Maiden always does a great job.

Looking back, does 2001 seem like a totally different Less Than Jake?

I can only speak for myself in that but it’s been the blink of an eye. It doesn’t feel like it’s been 15 years, it feels like yesterday. I feel the same. I feel exactly the same. The only thing that’s different now is that the things I’m passionate about, I’m more passionate about.

Such as?

Music, art, family, friends, travelling. As you get older, you start to prioritise the things that mean the most to you. You get a finite time inbetween the shit you’re responsible for. You priroitise the things you want to allow into your free time or personal space.

Is it a juggling act?

It’s always been a juggling act but now it’s just a bit more because I have a daughter and other things that I do.

Are you the super cool punk dad?

She’s 4 so I’m still just dad.

The ‘Live from Astoria’ vinyl release will coincide with a short, post-Groezrock, UK tour which kicks off May 2^nd at the Kingston Hippodrome.

‘Digging Deep’ opens proceedings and, frankly, there’s not much to separate it from ‘Stranded’ or ‘Lifelines’. It’s got all the hallmarks of the genre: high-pitched adolescent vocals, fast but not too fast riffs and a positive attitude towards life. However, there’s very few moments that stand out as genuinely catchy.

The popularity of bands like New Found Glory, Blink 182 and All American Rejects led to a mass of imitators during the early 2000s but that was over a decade ago. ‘Never Stars’ could quite easily be a covers EP but it would be incredibly difficult to tell the difference. This is most apparent on the vocals, which have a distinctly faux-American twang. It’s a stark contrast to bands like Creeper, who revel in their Englishness, and can be somewhat grating.

It’s telling that, even after listening to it several times, we can’t pick out anything unique about ‘Never Stars’. We can remember the general sound and making comparisons to bands our friends liked when we were teenagers but nothing that is truly memorable. In a world where pop-punk is going through a revival and there’s opportunities for the UK to make an impression, As the Sun Sleeps are hidden in the background.

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