Ugly kid Joe - Bring their full force Rock show to London

Ugly kid Joe **** American Californian Rock band might be out numbered by fans of their co-headling band Massive Wagons tonight, but they have a lot of family and work collegues in the venue tonight to cheer them on. They even have Klaus the guitarists mum in attendance and one of the three producers of the bands difinitive album 'America's least Wanted' (1992) they did say which one... but I didn't hear it properly. I actually have to admit that I didn't realise it was three people working on the record as producers, the album sound so complete... and you don't really get that with so many hands in the till. I have seen Ugly kid Joe quite a few times since they have reformed, but in a way their was something new for me to look forward to seeing and hearing done live. In the form of songs of the bands brand new album 'Rad wings of Destiny' (2022), which we reviewed recently and really enjoyed.

I also didn't realise that Cordell Crockett was not touring with the band at the moment, leaving only two original members of Ugly kid Joe in the band... maybe band are not as ugly as they used to be. Taking the missing places in the band for this tour are Chris Catalyst (Sisters of Mercy / Ghost) on bass, Mike Squires (Velvet Revolver / Duff McKeagan's Loaded) on guitar and Cameron Greenwood (Terrorvision) on drums. If you can't have the originals, then these are great replacements. Opening with one of the singles off the bands new album 'That ain't Livin', they open the show with a bang. Everyone always talks about the bands first full length album, but their second album 'Menace to Sobriety' (1995) was a killer record too. Included on this record was the singles 'Milkman's Son' and 'Tomorrow's World', but the second song in the bands set tonight 'V.I.P.' was another standout song on the record.

'So damn Cool' is basically "So damn cool, that you wouldn't believe how cool one song could be!", I have to say this love this track. While 'Cats in the Cradle' cover that was originally recorded by Harry Chaplin, but most people including me thought it was a Cat Stevens song. This is what I have been talking about recently, people with covers not realising who originally recorded it. Like a friend of mine, didn't realise that Johnny Cash covered the Nine inch Nails song 'Hurt'. He thought the original was done by Johnny Cash, so in a way I am feeling covers sometimes are stealing a song off the original artist. But I know when a band plays a cover, they are playing it as a tribute to a band they love. Going on to the low point in the bands set, which is their cover of 'Lola' by The Kinks which is totally out of place. I have to say I have never liked this song, and I am really not a fan of The Kinks... and I guess their cover is not that bad really. And it's the fact that I just don't like the song, and think it doesn't go with the rest of the set. It does lead to a lot of silly dancing in the circle pit, not sure if other people where liking it or not.

The new Ugly kid Joe wriiten songs of 'Rad wings of Destiny' stand up well against the rest of the songs in the set, 'Failure' is simply great and shows off what the band still can do when they put their mind to it. Makes you wonder why in the past, they decided to be gone for two long. I think the standout moment sin the set are the 'Milkman's Son' and 'Goddam Devil', which just sound huge. I so enjoyed singing these, and so did many other people in the crowd.