Music might seem to be the obvious career choice when you are the daughter of one of the members in the legendary Iron Maiden but while such an honor might be filled with incredible potential it can also come with enormous levels of trial by fire and the need to impress the audience on a much higher level. Such is the life of Lauren Harris, daughter of Maiden's master bass player Steve, who has recorded and released her debut album Calm Before The Storm on Demolition Records. One might have expected to hear Lauren throttle the listener with a display of rumbling traditional Metal and remain a bit closer to the sound delivered by her Father's band but the moment that the album begins you will find that this is not the case. Instead of going this route, she stuck to a more traditional Rock vibe that focused on catchy melody and lyrics and by doing this has opened the door to a different listener base than that of Iron Maiden. The album opens up with a cover of Gun's "Steal Your Fire", and this is a track that Lauren holds close to her heart having been a fan of theirs for many years. I felt this was a good way to start off and catch the listeners attention because you know that the basic listener might cry nepotism or feel that Mr. Harris gave the strong arm to have this done when in reality she was discovered by Russ Ballard as she performed in a pub. The musician didn't even realize that the similarity of name was that close. Dad Harris did lend his professional support when it came down to the recording of the album and he appears on four tracks which marks the first time he has ever recorded music that wasn't Maiden related. Lauren's band is made up of drummer (and producer/co-writer) Tommy McWilliams, guitarist Richie Faulkner and bassist Randy Gregg. McWilliams has been around for some time and worked with a number of different artists during his career while Gregg has been recently associated with Angel and Thin Lizzy. Together they make sure that there is a solid amount of commercially accessible Rock to enjoy as well as some touching ballads but if you are looking for pounding Metal then this is not really for you.
There is a lot of sing along capable tracks that might appeal to a younger listener base that is looking for a little more maturity and substance than Avril Lavigne or others like her might be offering. Lauren shines on tracks like "From The Bottom To The Top", and this is one of my own favorites and it seems destined to be a quality video number. "Let Us Be" is another goodie while "Come On Over" hits you as the strongest rocker piece on the recording. There is a lot of ACDC type riffing going down on numbers like these and we even get a taste of some classic UFO with the bands rendition of "Natural Thing". Bass on that number is also courtesy of Steve Harris and to be honest they did a nice job on it. Lauren and her band have been supporting Iron Maiden on their "Somewhere Back In Time" tour and with this kind of push have been surely able to reach a lot of people who enjoy her brand of Rock and Roll. At the end of the day its very accessible stuff and its nice to find that Steve's daughter is choosing to give it a go and show that not all female lead vocalists need to be Operatic Sirens or Growlers to be in a band. If you are a fan of your classic rock sound then this is something you should give a chance. Good luck Lauren.
Track Listing
1. Steal Your Fire
2. Your Turn
3. Get Over It
4. Like It Or Not
5. From The Bottom To The Top
6. Let Us Be
7. Hurry Up
8. Come On Over
9. Hit Or Miss
10. See Through
11. You Say
12. Natural Thing - bonus
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