Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, lead guitarist, backing vocalist, and primary songwriter Rick Nielsen of CHEAP TRICK joins Chris DeMakes for a very special Labor Day episode of Chris DeMakes A Podcast to discuss, critique and analyze their mega hit single "Surrender" off of 1978's Heaven Tonight. "Every kid that I knew thought their parents were weird and I was no exception," describes Rick Nielsen.
"This episode means so much to me and is very special because I grew up listening to Cheap Trick," explains Chris DeMakes. "I had the opportunity to cover their classic hit 'Surrender' on the Less Than Jake album Anthem and finally got to meet him when we played a show with them back in May 2017. I'm blown away and honored that Rick Nielsen knows me and my band by name."
DeMakes' compelling discussions and songwriting knowledge has landed his podcast in the mix with NPR, Rolling Stone, and Vox among others. Recent episodes include Goldfinger front man and renowned producer John Feldmann (5 Seconds of Summer, Blink-182, Panic! At the Disco, Good Charlotte), Bill Stevenson (Descendents, ALL, Black Flag), Matt Skiba (Alkaline Trio), Anthony Raneri (Bayside), and acclaimed Grammy-winning producer Howard Benson(My Chemical Romance, The All-American Rejects, Adam Lambert, Kelly Clarkson) among many others. Subscribe here.
Less Than Jake has sold over 2 million albums worldwide. Their groundbreaking ska-punk albums Pezcore, Losing Streak, and Hello Rockview have stood the test of time and continue to connect with younger generations. Borders and Boundaries was released in 2000 and contained the singles “Look What Happened” along with their hometown anthem “Gainesville Rock City” which received some airtime on MTV2. 2003’s Anthem debuted at #45 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums Chart and spawned three major singles in the US and UK. “She’s Gonna Break Soon” spent a couple weeks on MTV’s TRL, “The Science of Selling Yourself Short” spent five weeks on Billboard’s Top 40 Singles Chart and peaked at #37, and “The Brightest Bulb Has Burned Out” featuring Billy Bragg spent time on the UK Singles Chart.
A few of DeMakes’ most memorable tours include Bon Jovi’s The Crush Tour (2000), Descendents’ Caffeine Nation Tour (1997), and Linkin Park’s Projekt Revolution (2004). The band also holds the record for most performances on Vans Warped Tour at 441 (nobody is even close). Less Than Jake has been a staple on the international festival circuit as well which includes Reading and Leeds Festival, Download Festival, Fuji Rock Festival, Soundwave Festival, Pukkelpop, Hurricane Festival, Frequency Festival, and Greenfield Festival.
When DeMakes isn’t on tour, he’s busy in his home studio doing custom songs, jingles, and voiceovers. In addition, he’s available for music business consulting and motivational speaking at high schools and universities.