So what happens to a smart young band with an enormous following and a reasonable grasp of the ever-so-subjective punk-ethic? What can the suits working the machines called Capitol, Atlantic, and Warner tell them about reaching their peers?

Just ask Gainesville's Less Than Jake. The punk-ska quintet is redefining the artist-label relationship by retaining an unorthodox amount of control over their own product. A degree of control that, until now, was inconceivable in the recording industry. They are schooling the label in making records and kindly accepting the cash, all while keeping true to their own values.

Less Than Jake landed a record deal without lifting a finger--quite ironic considering this band has a do-it-your-self technique that has succeeded well enough that the decision to sign wasn't made out of desperation.

According to LTJ drummer Vinnie (no last names, please), it's no different than anything else they've ever done and been respected for. "We're on Capitol records, we're on No Idea Records, we're on Far Out Records, we're on Too Many Records--I can go on forever. We're just on a lot of labels," he says. Less Than Jake's practices remain the same but there are still some skeptics who argue against the decision to sign with Capitol Records.

For Less Than Jake's ideology, signing wasn't an option at first. Why take on an all-encompassing contract when independence has proved so advantageous? But a trip to Capitol was nearly enough to change their minds and a hands-off contract was just the push they needed to agree to the deal.

"Less Than Jake doesn't rely on the record company to break them--they're going to break themselves," says Capitol A&R Rep Craig Aaronson. "They're like a well-oiled machine that's been doing this for a long time. They know how to tap into their audience much better than we do. What we're going to try and do is spring off from the base that they've laid and try to take it to the next level. But the hardest fans to get are the first 25,000 and they've already got them on their own from three to four years of hard work. We're following their lead.

They have a lot of freedom on this contract."

After hearing a Less Than Jake demo acquired through a friend, Aaronson followed Less Than Jake around the country for nearly seven months before asking them to sign.

"He's an okay guy so it was easy to be cool and not try to play up to him," says Vinnie. "We're all pretty down-to-earth people and it was more of a hindrance than anything else. It's nerve- wracking to have somebody around who you

know is watching you for a specific reason. So it wasn't like, 'you're from Capitol and what can you do for us.' It was more like, 'that guy from Capitol is here and it's kind of creepy because he's watching us."'

Not only has the band earned the coveted major label contract, they've proved that a grass-roots college-town band can both break out and succeed on their own and spark the big gest in the business to learn from their work.

Don't attribute Less Than Jake's success to rocket science,

though. "We're not doing anything amazing," says bassist Roger. "Anybody can pull off the stuff that we're doing, it's just that we have the motivation for it."

"It's about having a clue," adds saxophonist Jessica, "and having the resources available to you that you can tap into."

Less Than Jake plans on taking advantage of the freedom of their new-found status by keeping ticket and merchandise prices down and continuing to play all ages shows. The biggest problem. many fans have with their favorite indepen dent bands hitting the main stream is the overall rise in prices, and Less Than Jake have addressed that prob lem from the get-go.

"I can cite bands that, when they were on an indie label, were doing $5 and $6 shows, selling their T-shirts for $7 to $10, and being down-to-earth. As soon as they signed to a major label, they're doing $13 shows, selling their shirts between $15 and $18, and they weren't down to earth," explains Vinnie. "So their music may not suck but their business practices and the way they handle themselves sucks. If someone says, 'they suck' then I can say, 'yeah, they do.'

"It's not heavy-handed punk, it's just smart to help people who want to come see us."

There are still those who complain because, suddenly, what they've held so sacred has become part of the mainstream. Although several of Less Than Jake's friends urged them to go with the deal, some fans discount them.

The D.I.Y. ethic has never been clearly defined. While die-hard punks preach unity, they often alienate themselves in the process. Less Than Jake's attitude pushes towards unity by extendmg courtesy towards their existing fan base, allowing fans to obtain the upcoming release through mail-order or at shows for a cheaper price. As for the label, Aaronson claims that Capitol is keeping wholesale prices down for now, so CDs should remain under ten 30 dollars even through retail. "The people who scoff at us now because we've got a wide audience, because we appeal to more people, then screw them," says Jessica. "They're elitists and I'm not going to be part of some elitist, separatist crowd. One thing I'm proud of is that we do have so many different kinds of people that listen to us."

Separatism hasn't gotten Less Than Jake to this point, proving that this one alleged form of idealism crumbles in the face of reason. So, basically, all that's left is fan loyalty, do-it-yourself ideals, and three power chords.

Less Than Jake arose as a punk trio with Chris on guitar and vocals, Vinnie on