Dog Eat Dog

Warrant | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 25, 1992)
• Original Release Date: August 25, 1992
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B0000028N7
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #14,093 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Warrant's forgotten classic, January 20, 2006

By 

Daniel Maltzman (Arlington, MA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dog Eat Dog (Audio CD)

Chances are, if you sported big poofy-teased hair and lipstick in the 80s/early 90s, 1992 was not your year. With the release of Nirvana's "Nevermind," (1991) almost overnight, everything that had been cool was rendered obsolete and bands that had been huge were left out in the cold.

Warrant is the textbook example of one of those bands whose popularity was killed by the alt. rock and grunge boom of the early 90s. The LA quintet had actually come along late in the game, releasing two massive albums at the tale end of the hair-metal era, with 1989's "Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich" and 1990's "Cherry Pie." While Warrant indulged in typical hair-metal cliché's; like the power ballads ("Heaven," "Sometimes She Cries") and the not-too-subtle sexual innuendos ("Down Boys," "Cherry Pie") they were actually one of the best bands to come out of the genre. The thing that separated Warrant from a million other hair-bands of the late 80s/early 90s is singer Jani Lane's solid-songwriting. While "Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich" was a pretty superficial fluff-piece, it was very well-written and a heck of a lot of fun. "Cherry Pie," contrary to the public's perception (the video surely didn't help their cause) was a first-rate album that saw the band mature and branch out artistically.

Perhaps as a response to the grunge/alt.rock movements of the early 90s, Warrant made the most aggressive album of their career with 1992's "Dog Eat Dog." While the album is most definitely a pop-metal album, with strong melodies and sing-along-choruses, it's muscular, and avoids the candy-ass fluff that was pervasive on the band's first two albums. While the band's first two albums pretty much followed the typical hair-metal AOR format, of having a few killer singles surrounded by fluff, "Dog Eat Dog" is pretty solid without any filler. Thus "Dog Eat Dog" is the band's most honest, aggressive, well-written album.

The rapid-fire, hard-hitting "Machine Gun" makes for a strong opener. "The Hole in my Wall" sounds like a more aggressive yet slowed down "Cherry Pie." While its sexual innuendo is obvious, it is nowhere near as cheesy as "Cherry Pie" and actually has some teeth. Lane shows his real talent with the outstanding "April 2031." With its Pink Floyd Wall-era haunting children's chorus and apocalyptic delivery, had "April 2031" been released today by a totally unknown band, it would surely be praised. The beautiful baled "Andy Warhol Was Right" sounds a bit like "I Saw Red," only this comes off more powerful and sincere. Its orchestration works nicely. "Bonfire" is an infectious, outstanding rocker. "The Bitter Pill" is another balled with cool snyths that could have been a huge hit had it only been released a few years prior. "Hollywood (So Far, So Good)" is a total rip-off of Jane's Addiction "Jane Says." While not nearly as good, Warrant's version is still effective. "All My Bridges are Burning" and "Quicksand" are both solid rockers. "Let it Rain" is comparable to Warrant's huge hit "Heaven," only this sounds less generic, more heartfelt. "Inside Out" is by far the heaviest song Warrant ever penned and would even make Megadeth or Anthrax proud. The hard-rocking, bittersweet "Sad Theresa" makes for a good closer.

Timing is what really hurt Warrant and "Dog Eat Dog" in particular. If Warrant had come out five years earlier, with "Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich" in 1984, "Cherry Pie" in '85, and "Dog Eat Dog" in 1989, it would have been a smash hit and several of its songs would have been hit singles and radio staples. But in 1992, Warrant didn't stand a chance, no matter how good their album was. The sad thing is when most people think of Warrant, if they remember them at all, they think of some cheesy hair-band, with white matching leather suits, or think of the ultra tacky "Cherry Pie" video. What they don't know is that Warrant was actually a really good band. Unfortunately, Warrant didn't actually reach their full potential until it was too late. It's no small wonder why "Dog Eat Dog" is generally considered by the Warrant faithful as the band's best album.

While Warrant's first two albums have recently been re-released and remastered with bonus songs, "Dog Eat Dog" did not get the same treatment. Unfortunately, "Dog Eat Dog" is now out-of-print and only available used. If you should see "Dog Eat Dog" at a used CD shop or at a church rummage sale, by all means pick it up. If you like 80s-style melodic hard-rock you won't be disappointed.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Greatest, September 19, 2005

By 

S. B. Simpson "Scott" (Bearden, Ar. USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dog Eat Dog (Audio CD)

Lets just say that sometimes you have to pull for the underdog (no pun intended). I dismissed Warrant as wannaBe's until I saw them open for the Crue in 90 on the Feelgood tour. I didn't even watch their performance until they stopped me dead in my tracks with their performance of the (at the time) unrecorded song Uncle Tom's Cabin. Blew me and the rest of the crowd away and changed the way I perceived the band. Cherry Pie was a very cool slab o' rock, but Dog Eat Dog was absolutely brilliant! Some may say D.E.D was Warrant's stab at the grunge bandwagon, but it was heavy and thoughtful without a hint of trend whoring. A very un-Warrant disc of just tight playing, great lyrics, and underappreciated by the masses hard work. People can say till the end of time that grunge killed the 80's, but that's a cop-out. Fickle fans who are begging to be told what is great music because rock has become lazy and the masses of fans have too brought about the demise of what made rock and roll so great. The songs on D.E.D were ahead of their time. Listen to this cd today without the MTV, Blender jadedness, and you will hear amazing guitar solos, perfect production, and great songwriting at its best.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great album, September 6, 2004

By 

the cruest - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dog Eat Dog (Audio CD)

I should say that warrant is a very underated band, alltough they camed in a time where many people think music wasn't serious, they are great and talented musicians with a great lead singer in Jani Lane. I think this album is their best, very hard, but it also keeps the glam that put Warrant in the picture in the late 80's. I dont know why so many people criticize this great band, cause back then they used to be cool, as far as Im concerned Ive never been afraid to show what I really like, and not what people tell me to like, so I shout: WARRANT IS A GREAT BAND!!, this album rocks, the best songs on the album are: Machine gun, April 2031, Andy Warhol was right, The Bitter Pill and All of my bridges are burning, but overall it is a great record, so stop listening to stupid people who dont have their own taste and if you love rock n roll add this great cd to your collection, and dont be afraid to admit that you love it.