‘Ere’s one for ya! Did you know that Malta is only one of two countries where Coca-Cola isn’t the number one brand soft drink. Yip Malta has a drink that outsells Coke and for added info the other country is Scotland where we drink the fabled hang over cure Irn Bru to a man. However that’s where the comparison with the country of my birth ends. If only Scotland or indeed the UK could produce a Hard Rock band with the energy and passion of FIRE.

If you are a fan of Classic Hard Rock from the 80s and 90s then FIRE is the band for you. Originality is firmly out of the window but hard driving riffs, catchy songs and a power house vocalist in Kenneth Calleja all come together to fuse a tight sound that is instantly likeable. Opening with a cracking Hard Rocker in the shape of ‘’Get Out Of My Way’’ is a great move. It sets the store for the remainder of the album: staple Hard Rock cuts singed with sulphur and brimstone. Calleja is some find as a singer, reminiscent of say Joe Lynn Turner and even Sebastian Bach, praise indeed but he has a voice that could easily see him move onto bigger things.

That’s not discounting the remaining band members who lay down formulaic Hard Rock with style and panache. And with a production that would embarrass signed bands FIRE has delivered an unexpected Hard Rock highlight for 2006. So if you are a fan of SKID ROW, KISS, THUNDER etc, etc then FIRE may burn a hole in your pocket for all the right reasons.

(Online January 12, 2007)