Saxon--Dogs of War (1995)
Rating--6.0

Dogs of War--RealAudio
Saxon tread the line in the early 90's between straight-ahead metal and a somewhat commercialized effort. 'Dogs of War' is in that vein. With such a promising opener in "Dogs of War" (killer riff!) followed by the rocking "Burning Wheels," the band unfortunately lets up a bit, and won't hit a high point like those again until the last track "Yesterday's Gone". What you find in the middle is good riffs here and there but less head-grooving, which Saxon is quite capable of.
"The Great White Buffalo" has some nice parts, but again the little radio-friendly gremlins rear their heads. Think of a 'Turbo' or 'Ram It Down' era Priest without the synths. The metamorphosis from this album to their next monster effort, 'Unleash The Beast,' is an amazing improvement. Nothing landmark here. However, I can't get that "Dogs Of War" riff outta my head...
TRACK LIST: Dogs of War/Burning Wheels/Don't Worry/Big Twin Rolling (Coming Home)/Hold On/ The Great White Buffalo/Demolition Alley/Walking Through Tokyo/Give it All Away/Yesterday's Gone

Back to Discography