The Nature Of The Beast

The fourth album by Shapeshifter was released in 2009 and marked the group's first number one on the New Zealand album charts. Titled The System Is A Vampire, the LP was a genre-mixing hit that defined the scene the band almost singlehandedly began in their home country. The five-piece have gradually seen their popularity grow to match their enormous critical acclaim over the course of four studio albums, with the drum'n'bass heroes now a genuine crossover act.

Having toured the globe countless times since the release of their 2001 debut Realtime, the kiwi legends are slowly making a name for themselves internationally as well. Many New Zealand bands struggle to attain international success due to isolation issues. “We lived in Melbourne for five years so we could be in Australia, so we could tour Australia, and even saying that we've hardly made an impression compared to a lot of other bands touring Australia,” bassist Nick Robinson laments. “We've been to the UK and Europe, so I think we've slowly made some progress, but people are not just gonna be interested in you for no reason. It is hard to play everywhere, but saying that, that's what it's all about.”

Having lived as far away as Berlin in the past, the five members are all now living back in New Zealand, albeit in different cities. “I live in Christchurch,” explains Robinson. “And then we've got Devin [Abrams, synths/saxophone] who's in Wellington, and then Sam [Trevethick, keyboards/guitar/percussion] and Paora ['P Digsss' Apera, vocals] live in Auckland. So [we're] divided up over New Zealand. We just get together before a tour or a clump of gigs and have a good practice. We'll stay in one city for a couple of weeks and book out a room and really take our time and have a good practice. In the old days we used to just hurry through practice and go out and wing it, but I think eventually the disasters build up. You kind of get a fear of them as you get older.”

Shapeshifter's live show stands out from most drum'n'bass outfits because of the full band set-up. P-Digsss provides the vocals, while Abrams on keys and Trevethick on guitar perfectly complement the intimidating rhythm section of bassist Robinson and drummer, Johnny Hooves. Mixing synthesisers and samplers through the set, the live experience is intense and has seen the group lauded at festivals the world over.

“All our heroes were drum'n'bass DJs; but we weren't DJs, we were musicians,” the affable bass player explains of his band's decision to go with a full band set-up. “I hope it doesn't sound slack, but we found that there was less chance of screwing it up, you know? Because with computers and digital it's all very well, but if you're just playing along, there are so many things that could go wrong. We always thought with the full band set-up we can have the power to have tempo changes and all sorts of [different] things that would be too complicated to actually do on a computer for us. So I think it was more a case of what we knew. And I think it worked pretty well to give that human sort of vibe. We might speed up quite a bit between the start and the end of a song, and the crowd might subconsciously feel that, I don't know.”

Outside of the band, each member is involved in various side-projects, with Robinson himself a regular DJ and collaborator. The DJing in particular provides a nice perspective on Shapeshifter's live set-up. “The thing with DJing [is] there's a lot of mixing, so you want the party to be cranking,” ponders Robinson. “Because you're a band, you're more right or something I guess to pull back and be real mellow for a while, and even if people go to the bar or whatever you can do that 'cause it's all about the dynamics really. Just to get real quiet with hardly any sound, and then all of a sudden it really is cranking and loud and as full-on as possible. And I think that's quite powerful with live shows. DJing, you want the party to maybe be a bit smoother, you want the intensity to rise more [gradually].”

Having spent the last few months writing and recording, the group are now prepping themselves for the eventual release of a long -waited fifth studio album. The System Is A Vampire came three years after their landmark third album, Soulstice, and having already waited another three years for more new material, anticipation is high among fans for their next record. “We've pretty much almost finished the album,” reveals Robinson. “We're just sort of getting ready for the release and what-not. It's not actually finished yet, so we're still going on it. We've been playing maybe three or four songs live, mixing them into the set. Especially over in Europe, we were playing a lot last time we went there not too long ago. They're very enjoyable to play live, so that's been a lot of fun for us, releasing a new album and when that will be depends on the business side of things.”

The album will begin another period of extended touring for the band, which Robinson happily describes as “the nature of the beast”. Before the album/touring cycle can begin again, Shapeshifter are warming up with a quick tour of Australia, including a trip west for the Natural NZ Music Festival. New Zealand's relatively isolated position means the band already feel a kinship with Perth, made all the more special by the strong response the WA audiences always have for the band. The feeling is definitely mutual, according to Robinson.

“I think we were there... could've even been nearly over a year now, but we played at a drum'n'bass party and it was epic! And it's always epic when we come to Perth. I'm not just saying that 'cause I'm doing an interview, it actually always is – it's always epic in Perth. Heaps of people and it's gotta be the most fun place to play in Australia, I'd say. Melbourne's up there too, just 'cause we all lived there and we've got a bit of a following there, but we'd probably get more people in Perth.”

Shapeshifter will be playing the following shows:

Friday 30 November - Forum, Melbourne VIC
Saturday 1 December - Natural New Zealand Music Festival, Red Hill Auditorium, Perth WA
Friday 7 December - The Hi-Fi, Brisbane QLD
Saturday 8 December - Homebake, Domain, Sydney NSW