Upon first listen of 'Shapeshifter' by The Alacrity, I was unsure how I felt. At the time I was hearing a LOT of music that really sounded the same, followed the same formula, had the same vibe. I was rather disillusioned with the whole industrial movement as a whole at the time (which isn't to say that I'm not still.) But I felt I my state of mind was an unfair one to be judging music of this nature, so I set it aside for a while and let some time go by. So finally I felt able to objectively listen to the record, and put it on. A very different listen than I recalled having that first time around. There are certainly some thoughts that came to me that were similar, but on the whole, I actually found myself enjoying the record FAR more. It even made me fondly reminisce of my club days. Jason Alacrity, mastermind behind The Alacrity, has an impressive resume including opening for Skinny Puppy, remixes for a variety of acts, and performances with Stromkern, Song of Zarathustra, Babyland and Trance the Sun which fellow Shinto records artist Scarlet Slipping's Dawn Wagner (whose music I've been in love with since the 90's) was at one time a part of. Needless to say, you don't gain these sorts of credentials without producing some worthwhile music. 'Shapeshifter' is an interesting ride through a collection of EBM and industrial tracks, some of which really shine, some of which may be a tad generic, but all of which are certainly well produced and performed. Songs like 'D:soLVE (Original Sin),' 'Shapeshifter,' and 'Wolfs Hook' demonstrate a careful cocktail of darkness evident in the harder beats, aggressive synths and occasional guitars; mixed with the light. A particular gem is 'Graveyards of Empires,' a bit slower, a bit quieter, but still manages to be quite epic, yet emotional. Vocally a lot of the work on this record is rather reminiscent to VNV Nation, but with a bit rougher, a bit more industrial, a little less dance, which is good. On the whole it's a relatively solid release with certain moments better than others, but nothing that drags the album down. Maybe a little less VNV next time around, but that's just my personal opinion.