UGLY KID JOE's 'Uglier Than They Used Ta Be' Gets Release Date; More Details Revealed

Raucous rockers UGLY KID JOE will release a new full-length album titled “Uglier Than They Used Ta Be” in North America on October 16 via Metalville/UKJ Records. The CD was recorded at JT Studios and Balance Studios in Louisiana with producer (and UGLY KID JOE guitarist) Dave Fortman (SLIPKNOT, GODSMACK, EVANESCENCE).

Whitfield Crane (vocals) and Klaus Eichstadt (guitar) teamed up with Sonny Mayo (guitar), Shannon Larkin (drums), Zac Morris (drums), Cordell Crockett (bass) and Dave Fortman (guitar) to form the now seven-member lineup (a.k.a. “Seven-Headed Monster”; pictured below) and write and record in the studio. The result is the most cohesive sounding UGLY KID JOE record to date.

“Uglier Than They Used Ta Be” boasts a collection of well-crafted rock tunes, from the riff-driven “Let The Record Play” to the hard-hitting “She’s Already Gone” and “Hell Ain’t Hard To Find”.

“It’s a full circle of sorts,” says Crane. “There was a lot of love and talent in one room and that is exactly what this album sounds like.”

In addition to the nine newly written original songs, the album features a couple of cover songs, including RARE EARTH‘s version of “Papa Was A Rolling Stone”, with Australian chart-topping vocalist Dallas Frasca lending her unmistakable vocals behind Crane, and the MOTÖRHEAD classic “Ace Of Spades”, with a very special guest appearance from MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell, who lends his signature sound to the timeless track. Campbell also appears on the songs “My Old Man” and “Under The Bottom”.

“Uglier Than They Used Ta Be” track listing:

01. Hell Ain’t Hard To Find
02. Let The Record Play
03. Bad Seed
04. Mirror The Man
05. She’s Already Gone
06. Nothing Ever Changes
07. My Old Man (feat. Phil Campbell)
08. Under The Bottom (feat. Phil Campbell)
09. Ace Of Spades (feat. Phil Campbell)
10. Enemy
11. Papa Was A Rolling Stone (feat. Dallas Frasca)

This September, UGLY KID JOE will head to the U.K. for an intimate tour, finishing with two shows at the Underworld in London.

UGLY KID JOE‘s most recent CD + DVD, “Stairway To Hell”, was released in October 2013 via Metalville. The set contained the band’s latest EP, “Stairway To Hell”, which was originally released independently in 2012, plus three bonus acoustic tracks and a special bonus DVD, including the 2012 Download festival concert, two new video clips and a “making-of” segment.

UGLY KID JOE released three full-length albums and toured extensively throughout the 1990s before disbanding in 1997.

From left to right in photo below: Whitfield Crane, Dave Fortman, Klaus Eichstadt, Cordell Crockett, Zac Morris, Shannon Larkin, Sonny Mayo