Dog City

AMG Review of Dog City

Tom Demalon
All Music Guide

Led by singer/lyricist John Palumbo, long-time Baltimore band Crack The Sky released Dog City in 1990. With progressive leanings and one ear cocked toward AOR radio, Dog City is a well-thought out effort that chronicles discontent and urban decay in an often melodic manner.

Palumbo is a solid if unspectacular vocalist, and his lyrics work except when he tries to avoid being too self-conscious. "Love Me Like a Terrorist" is a melodic song about sexual role-playing wrapped in a pop/metal sheen, and wouldn't sound out of place on a Def Leppard record. On "Lost Boys," Palumbo details street-gang life over a melody that, especially during the opening, resembles Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here." However, by the middle of the album on the appropriately titled "Quicksand," things begin to bog down as the band falls prey to the usual excesses found in the prog rock genre, and they never manage to regain their footing.