UMUR
"Songs for the Ugly" is the second full-length studio album by Canadian thrash metal act M.A.D. (aka: Mutually Assured Destruction), but now working under The Mad monicker. The album was released through Epidemic Records in 1992. It´s the successor to "Taboo of the Western World" from 1991 and it would be the band´s last album as they disbanded in 1994.
Stylistically the material on "Songs for the Ugly" is still US influenced thrash metal, but as a sign of the times the band have now opted to include a few alternative metal ideas. Lead vocalist/guitarist Rob Johnson still sings using the same shouting staccato delivery his did on "Taboo of the Western World", and it´s still one of the weakest links of the album. The high level instrumental musicianship is on the other hand one of the greatest assets of the album.
The songwriting is a bit all over the place, and The Mad have a hard time deciding which way to go, and therefore "Songs for the Ugly" comes off inconsistent and aimless. The sound production is decent enough, but not really great, and upon conclusion "Songs for the Ugly" is a step down in quality from "Taboo of the Western World", which itself wasn´t the greatest thrash metal release, so a 2.5 - 3 star (55%) rating isn´t all wrong.