The first few songs bop around and hide their catchy hooks beneath warm’n’fuzzy distortion. The tempos are quick and Bangles-ish and the topics airy and fun.
The sampler-oriented five song release displays their psycho-thrash sound honed into a razor sharp vision of urban nightmares and introspective realities.
Ugly contains all the thrash trio’s classics from their EPs as well as newer stuff. Their mid-’80s thrash and burn is refreshing without being nostalgic.
You’re in for a real treat if you dig sultry vocals, virtuoso piano playing, and personal, witty lyrics that are at times funny, depressing, or cynical.
The funky, hip-hop thing el Dopa does serves them well; when they push toward a complicated, multi-layered style, they occupy both your mind and your feet.