Hailing from the city of Norwich in England, SHRAPNEL have been testing our ears since 2009, and in that time, they have been able to release four full length albums and three EP’s. I have to admit that before listening to their latest attempt at world domination, “In Gravity”, I had never consciously heard any of their material before. And I can only say that I am now questioning myself as to why I have let this lack of judgment happen to me. This was not my first thought when their music started to blast into my ears through my headphones whilst walking the dogs. It all sounded a bit predictable, a tad boring and just not exciting enough. And yes, it took a number of sessions of listening to the SHRAPNEL before “In Gravity” got to the stage of sounding promising.

It was when I really started thinking about what I would be typing when I would start this review that it all twigged. Everything started to make sense to me, and with that came the realisation that in fact “In Gravity” is a very good album. With Thrash Metal as a base, but also harbouring musical styles like Power Metal, Heavy Metal and even some Emo. “Amber Screams” is one of the examples where you do gather that SHRAPNEL are a group of very capable musicians. Not only have they succeeded in writing and recording good music, but it has been captured and produced in such a way that you have no choice but to let the music grow on you throughout the process.

All of a sudden, the message in my review would have to change. I really had to think about how I would explain how I view and experience all of this. I decided to go straight for the throat and be as blunt as I can. I would mention to the people who already know and love SHRAPNEL that they have once again produced an album that is worthy of their admiration. On the other side of the spectrum, my view for those who haven’t embraced SHRAPNEL yet is to give “In Gravity” enough spinning time to be able to either grow on you or not. I can assure you that if it does, you will simply adore the album and go looking for their earlier three albums. If however you are one of those who just don’t get it, you have my sympathy.