There are few singers on the Northern Irish hard rock scene that have been around in as many different incarnations as John 'Harv' Harbinson.

Renowned for his unmistakable voice and stage presence Harv (and the rest of the band) know the formula for hard hitting tracks, big chorus, big guitar and even bigger vocals.

Harv's latest band Stormzone have just released their debut album 'Caught in the Act' of 11 tracks of pure 80's hard rock.

The album opens with 'Spellbound' and instantly you begin to question if this is in fact a new release or an old LP that harks back to the days when AOR bands ruled the world. There is some great guitar solo's courtesy of Keith Harris throughout the album most notably on 'Tugging at my heartstrings'.

It's been a while from a I have a heard just as many keyboards on an album but there are plenty of catchy lines on songs such as 'Hold on to her Love'.

The highlight of the album for me is undoubtedly 'Crying in the Rain', a great track which displays the depth of Harv's vocals and firmly impregnates itself in your memory.

Overall this is a fine album but lacks enough variety to make it something you can listen to over and over again, but there are enough well rounded tracks on here to make it an enjoyable CD. So if you think that there is not enough bands in the world like Europe or Nazareth then 'Caught in the Act' is for you.


7.5/10
Kerri