In 1992, California rockers Ugly Kid Joe released their seminal, debut album 'America's Least Wanted'.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of the album and Ugly Kid Joe are celebrating their quarter-century with an Australian tour where they'll be playing 'America's Least Wanted' in its entirety.
For frontman Whitfield Crane, it's a surreal experience being able to relive one of the band's crowning glories with the fans who made it such a phenomenal success.
“It feels surreal in the sense that we're actually able to do it,” Whit says, “and that the record was successful in the first place because that whole experience feels like a dream that happened, like it couldn't have been real but it was.”
'America's Least Wanted' was the band's ticket to commercial success and became essential listening for a generation of adolescents.
Yet when Ugly Kid Joe entered the studio in 1991 to record the album, they were little more than teenagers themselves. “We were coming off a small EP ['As Ugly As They Wanna Be'] and that EP is the highest-selling debut EP in the history of planet Earth and will be because no one's going to sell any records.
“Australia is the kind of place in my experience where people will go on a crazy three-day bender, but they'll recycle afterwards.”
“The record's not even that good but people liked it. So of course the label wanted to stuff us in the studio and make a record,” Whit explains.
“So when we walked into the studio we realised we were kids. I'd never been in a studio. I wasn't comfortable in a studio. I didn't how to make a record. I wanted to do it but I didn't really know what it was, which has an edge to it.
“That's why that record sounds good, because it doesn't know what it's doing. When you achieve something and you're just being yourself – maybe this is my opinion – things taste better and sound better, that's that. So we went in and made a record.”
The album spawned a number of hits, but none more enduring than their cover of 'Cat's In The Cradle' originally written and performed by Harry Chapin.
As Whit recounts, his decision to include the song on the album was made out of inexperience rather than as a result of divine foresight.
“We didn't have enough material for the record so I said out loud, 'hey, why don't we put 'Cat's In The Cradle' on there?' and the producer said 'that's a great idea, why don't we do that?'.
“So we tracked that song just to fill the record out and of course that song went on to become very successful around the world, but once again that wasn't on purpose.”
Ugly Kid Joe bring their 'America's Least Wanted' 25th anniversary shows to Australia and Whit says he, as well as the band, share a special bond with the country from when they first toured here in the '90s. “I like Australia in general, I consider it my second home,” he says.
“I love the people here, they remind me of Californians except less gentrified. Australia is the kind of place in my experience where people will go on a crazy three-day bender, but they'll recycle afterwards.
"I like that, I like those extremes; I mean, I'm like that. There's some familiarity about Australia, there's something special for me – I love this place.”
Ugly Kid Joe Tour Dates
Sun 3 Dec - Manning Bar (Sydney)Mon 4 Dec - The Zoo (Brisbane)
Wed 6 Dec - Capitol (Perth)
Thu 7 Dec - Fowlers Live (Adelaide)
Sat 9 Dec - Croxton Bandroom (Melbourne)
