Shrapnel Records has always been the home of the guitar hero, which makes Racer X the prototypical Shrapnel band. Featuring Paul Gilbert (only 18 years old when the band's debut, Street Lethal, was released), and soon joined by second guitarist Bruce Bouillet, the band's style centered around American hard rock/metal, sometimes sounding a bit like a faster mid-eighties Judas Priest but with more of a commercial edge (such as the "Into The Night" or the Van Halen-ish "Livin' The Hard Way") with the flashy virtuoso guitarwork always taking center stage. After two albums, the band broke up, with Gilbert joining Mr. Big and vocalist Jeff Martin becoming a drummer for Badlands. After being dormant for over a decade (presumably the two live albums were more like reunion gigs than anything else), the band regrouped in 2000 and and have since released three new albums, scarcely missing a beat from their early days.