In 1995 Ugly Kid Joe released their 2nd full-length record, Menace To Sobriety. A heavier and darker album than the predecessor, which fit the time, and Kerrang! Magazine called it “the album of year”, yet the album received little to no promotion in the US, validating vocalist Whitfield Crane’s claim that their label was backing away from them.
30 years later Menace To Sobriety’s true power is evident, without the bias of the times, and with the years having shown that many of the albums that were ignored by the labels prove to have much more life than the ones they spent their PR budgets on, Ugly Kid Joe may have recorded the heaviest and most consequential album of their careers.
Menace saw the addition of drummer Shannon Larkin from Wrathchild America, and later of Godsmack, and his impact was obvious from the opening of the powerful lead-off track God. His playing propels the doom of the lead-off single Tomorrow’s World, a track that shows how big an influence Black Sabbath was on the band, and one of the standouts on this album. The bands’ songwriting shines throughout this album, as does the musicianship, and of course, the infamous Ugly Kid Joe sense of humour. Milkman’s Son shows the depth of the band’s writing, and the different textures of Whit’s voice from smooth to snarl, the melody is memorable and so are the lyrics, sincere, yet humorous. As the record rolls on, we hear the powerful chemistry of the guitar duo of Dave Fortman and Klaus Eichstadt with riffs like Clover and the amazing Jesus Rode A Harley, and the heavy and funky bass playing of Cordell Crockett.
Deko is proud to bring this album back to vinyl for its first Official Repress in two different formats! The single album reissue is on Ugly Kid Joe Ghostly Green, and a double LP pressed at 45RPM on an explosive Orange A-Side/B-Side Splatter that comes in a gatefold, both featuring the bonus track Slower Than Nowhere, which was not included on the US release of the album originally. Both in limited pressings!
Pre-order here: https://www.dekoentertainment.com/reissues/ugly-kid-joe and check out Milkman’s Son below.
