Although this traditional metal band has New Wave of British Heavy Metal (along with doom) tendencies, Dogbane hails from North Carolina, and When Karma Comes Calling is the group's second album. References to Judas Priest and Black Sabbath abound, with vocalist Jeff Neal worshipping at the altars of Rob Halford and Ozzy Osbourne singing in their lower registers. Guitarists Mitch Allred, Jeff Rinehart and the late David Ellenburg provide mighty riffs that chug all the way back to the 1970s. (Ellenburg died during the recording of When Karma Comes Calling and was replaced by Rinehart).
Unfortunately, thin production strips away some of the testosterone that fuels this disc, and the songs, ultimately, aren't memorable. But here's betting that Dogbane puts on a hell of a live show.
Track Listing:
1) Warlord
2) Dogbane
3) When Karma Comes Calling
4) Deceiver
5) Calm Before the Storm
6) Devil by the Horns
7) Apocynaceae
8) Free Spirit
9) Sands of Time
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