Stormzone
Caught In the Act

February 2008
Released: 2007, Escape Music/ Zink Music
Rating: 1.5/5
Reviewer: Anders Sandvall

This Irish act is led by singer John Harv Harbinson (ex- Sweet Savage, No Sweat, Emerald, etc). He wanted to create a heavy rock band in the same vein as Whitesnake, Deep Purple, Dio and Journey. Add to that some 70’s-retro sounds combined with NWOBHM and you get a good idea of how they sound. Stormzone has been on the road with Jeff Scott Soto, Danger Danger and Danny Vaughn. CAUGHT IN THE ACT is Stormzone’s second album.



Unfortunately, Stormzone aren’t really up to par with the aforementioned bands. Harbinson has a really annoying voice that cuts through your eardrums and when he tries to hit the higher pitches it turns into shrieking. The only weak link is Harbinson, though; the rest of the band does a good job.



The 11 songs on the disc are all ordinary; nothing sticks out and it feels both weak and thin. There are a plethora of bands that sounds just like Stormzone and do a much better job, to be honest. I have listened to the disc many times to see if this is an album that grows on you, but it isn’t. Sure, the music and material is well-executed, but it doesn’t go beyond that.



CAUGHT IN THE ACT is just another melodic rock album that will be lost in the flood. They’re gonna have a hard time getting people to know this album. Maybe it’s enjoyable for the fans of Harbinson, but for the rest of the world it’s not fun at all.



http://www.zinkmusic.com