UGLY KID JOE — As Ugly As They Wanna Be (review)

UGLY KID JOE — As Ugly As They Wanna Be album cover EP · 1991 · Hard Rock Buy this album from MMA partners
3/5 ·
UMUR
As Ugly as They Wanna Be is the debut release by American heavy rock/ metal act Ugly Kid Joe. The 6 track, 25:25 minutes long EP was released in October 1991 by Stardog. The band gained a lot of popularity because of the extensive airplay on MTV of the song Everything About You. A dream scenario for a new act. Everything About You would also appear in the, at the time, very popular Wayne's World (1992) movie, which further helped the band´s rise to international stardom. As Ugly as They Wanna Be has sold enough copies to be certified multi-platinum.

The music on the EP has traces of eighties glam metal ( I think I hear both traces of Mötley Crue and Extreme), but the dominant sound is sligthly funky alternative heavy rock/ metal. Ugly Kid Joe is the best example I can think of when talking about perfect timing. The sound they brought on the table was fresh, funny and energetic and not too decadent like the glam metal posse of the eighties, which was obviously something the general record buying population found appealing by the early nineties. The greatest asset of the EP is the energy and good humour but the musicianship is actually pretty good too. Whitfield Crane is a skilled and charismatic vocalist with a recognisable sound. It´s the big hit Everything About You that gets most attention, but the opening track Madman ( which together with Everything About You was included, with minor changes, on the band´s debut album America's Least Wanted (1992)) and the pretty good cover version of Sweet Leaf by Black Sabbath are also quality tracks.

Listening to As Ugly as They Wanna Be today, it´s obvious when the EP was released. The hard rocking riffing of the eighties combined with the funky and alternative touch of the early nineties gives that away imidiately. I wasn´t much of a fan back when this EP was released, but I actually found As Ugly as They Wanna Be pretty entertaining when I listened to the EP before writing this review. For me this is a 3 - 3.5 star release.
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