Ham Fisted

Ham Fisted is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Local H.^[7][8] It was released through Island Records in January 1995.^[9] Two songs, "Cynic" and "Mayonnaise and Malaise", were released as airplay singles in 1994, though the album failed to chart. A music video for "Cynic" was directed by Jodi Wille and released in February 1995.^[10] In 2025, for its 30th anniversary, the band released a re-recorded version titled reFISTED.^[11]

Ham Fisted
Studio album by Local H
Released	January 24, 1995
Recorded	Summer 1994
Studio	Reflection Studios (Charlotte, North Carolina)
Genre	Rock, grunge
Length	47:52
Label	Island[1]
Producer	Steven Haigler[2]
Local H chronology
Drum (1991) Ham Fisted (1995) As Good as Dead (1996)
Singles from Ham Fisted
"Cynic" Released: 1994 "Mayonnaise and Malaise" Released: 1994

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Robert Christgau	[4]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[1]
Kerrang!	[5]
MusicHound Rock	[2]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[6]

Critical reception

Trouser Press wrote that Ham Fisted "offers an entertaining haymaker of cranked- up, stripped-down '95 noise."^[12] Robert Christgau gave the album a three-star "honourable mention", comparing it to two releases by Nirvana by calling the album "brighter than Bleach, less fly than Incesticide".^[4] Newsday called it "a spell-binding display of neurotic rock and roll at its finest."^[13] The Morning Call listed the album among the best of 1995, labeling it "a metallic punk-grunge KO."^[14]

Track listing

All songs written by Scott Lucas and Joe Daniels.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Feed"	2:38
2.	"Cynic[a][b]"	5:01
3.	"Mayonnaise and Malaise[a][c]"	4:46
4.	"User[c][d]"	2:50
5.	"Manipulator[e]"	4:09
6.	"Bag of Hammers"	2:39
7.	"Scott-Rock"	3:27
8.	"Sports Bar"	5:37
9.	"Chicago Fanphair '93"	4:01
10.	"Strict-9[b]"	6:12
11.	"Skid Marks"	5:04
12.	"Grrrlfriend"	1:28

^a appears on ICON: The Island Years compilation (2011)

^b demo recording appears on Twenty-Five Years of Skin in the Game compilation (2015)

^c re-recorded song from Local H's self-titled demo (1992)

^d live recording appears on Live in Europe (2018)

^e live recording appears on Alive '05 (2005)

Personnel

Local H

• Scott Lucas – vocals, guitar, bass guitar
• Joe Daniels – drums

Production

• Steven Haigler – producer, engineering, mixing at The Carriage House (Stamford, Connecticut)
• Dave Cozzie – assistant mix engineer
• Tracy Schroeder – additional engineering
• Janet DeMatteis – art coordination
• Jana Leòn – photography
• David Calderley – design
• Joe Bosso – A&R
• Bob Ludwig – mastering at Gateway Mastering Studios, Inc. (Portland, Maine)