Ugly Kid Joe is an American hard rock band from Isla Vista, California, formed in 1989.
To date, Ugly Kid Joe have released five full-length albums, two compilation albums and two EPs. Their best selling records are As Ugly as They Wanna Be (1991) and America's Least Wanted (1992), which were both certified double platinum by the RIAA; the former is notable for being the first EP to go platinum. The band broke up in 1997, but announced a reunion in 2010 and subsequently recommenced activity.
History
Early history (1989–1991)
Childhood friends Whitfield Crane and Klaus Eichstadt took an interest in music while growing up in Palo Alto, California. In 1989 James Lambert and Eichstadt joined Crane's band in Isla Vista, California, and the trio recorded a demo with another Palo Alto native, record producer Eric Valentine. After several band member changes, the band signed with Mercury Records in 1991. By this time the As Ugly as They Wanna Be line-up was formed; consisting of Crane, Eichstadt, Mark Davis, Roger Lahr, and Cordell Crockett.
Initially named Overdrive, then Suburban White Alcoholic Trash, the band got its name Ugly Kid Joe as a parody of L.A. glam band Pretty Boy Floyd, initially for a one night show in Santa Barbara opening for Pretty Boy Floyd. Pretty Boy Floyd would pull out of the show and have the gig cancelled, but the band decided to keep the name. Their MySpace page also says that the reunion lineup would be the same as the last one before their breakup.
In July 2011, according to drummer Shannon Larkin, a new album had been completed. He revealed the album's status in an interview with California's 107.7 The Bone at the Mayhem Festival, saying "It's a fun band – it's funny, you listen to the songs and it makes you laugh. Just a good-time rock band, y'know?"
On September 9, 2011, vocalist Whitfield Crane made an update on the band's official Facebook page stating he appeared 107.7 The Bone the day before and played a new track called "Love Ain't True" and stating that a 6 track EP and was mixed and finished. According to official website "also in the works is an EPK documenting the reunification and the latest recording sessions along with some rare old footage of interviews, behind the scenes stuff, and live performances".
The new EP, Stairway to Hell, was released digitally on June 5, 2012, while a physical version surfaced a month later, July 9. In order to promote the recording, Ugly Kid Joe played a series of festivals that summer, including Sweden Rock in Sweden, Download in England, Gods of Metal in Milan, Italy, and Belgrade Calling in Serbia. They were the main support act for Guns N' Roses in Tel Aviv, Israel on July 3, 2012, and also for Alice Cooper on his "Raise The Dead" tour in October 2012.
Ugly Kid Joe started a joint co-headlining European tour with Skid Row in October 2013 kicking off the tour in Southampton, UK.
In February 2015, Ugly Kid Joe successfully used pledgemusic.com in a crowdfunding effort to pay for the recording of their next album, to be titled Uglier Than They Used ta Be, is the first full-length studio album since they break-up after the album was completed in nearly 19 years, set to be released on October 16, 2015.
Ugly Kid Joe's first studio album in seven years, Rad Wings of Destiny, was released on October 21, 2022.
In January of 2023, the band announced its first U.S. tour in 27 years. The tour includes Fozzy and Pistols at Dawn.
Ugly Kid Joe is currently working on a new album, which is tentatively due for release in 2026.
Musical style and influences
Ugly Kid Joe has been categorized under several genres, including hard rock, pop metal, heavy metal, funk metal, glam metal and grunge. AllMusic described them as a "fun-loving hard rock/funk/alt-metal group" that has a "knack for crafting infectious pop-metal".
Lineups
{| class="toccolours" border=1 cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 style="width: 500px; margin: 0 0 1em 1em; border-collapse: collapse; border: 1px solid #E2E2E2;"
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1987–1989
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Eric Phillips – rhythm guitar, music, backing vocals
- Phil Hilgaertner – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Jon Spaulding – drums, lyrics
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1989
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Roger Lahr – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Phil Hilgaertner – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Mark Davis – drums, percussion
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1989–1992
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Roger Lahr – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cordell Crockett – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Mark Davis – drums, percussion
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1992–1993
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Dave Fortman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cordell Crockett – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Mark Davis – drums, percussion
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1994
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Dave Fortman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cordell Crockett – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Bob Fernandez – drums, percussion
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1994–1997
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Dave Fortman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cordell Crockett – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Shannon Larkin – drums, percussion
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 1997–2010
|
Disbanded
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee;"| 2010–2021
|
- Whitfield Crane – lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Dave Fortman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cordell Crockett – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Shannon Larkin – drums, percussion
|-
! style="background:#e7ebee:"| 2021–present
|
- Whitfield Crane– lead vocals
- Klaus Eichstadt – lead guitar, backing vocals
- Dave Fortman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals
- Cordell Crockett – bass guitar, backing vocals
- Zac Morris – drums, percussion
|}
Discography
Studio albums
- America's Least Wanted (1992)
- Menace to Sobriety (1995)
- Motel California (1996)
- Uglier Than They Used ta Be (2015)
- Rad Wings of Destiny (2022)
See also
- List of alternative metal artists
- List of funk metal and funk rock bands
References
External links
- Official Ugly Kid Joe website
- Ugly Kid Joe on RockAlmanac.com