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Shapeshifter: Heavy Shift.

Chris Ryder
Originally Appeared In

Shiftin’ The Night Away.

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Shapeshifter play the Great Northern Hotel in Byron Bay on Wednesday and The Zoo on Thursday.


After pursuing their careers as far as they can in New Zealand, Kiwi drum 'n' bassers Shapeshifter have elected to re-locate from their home town of Christchurch to Melbourne, following in the footsteps of more rock-oriented compatriots like Pacifier (ex-Shihad), Cassette and Fur Patrol. And Shape shifter - Devin Abrams, Nick Robinson, Sam Trevethick and Redford Grenell - will certainly be experiencing a baptism of fire when they hit Australia as before they've even had time to unpack their bags, they will be heading out on the road with fellow Christchurch band and seasoned Australian tourists, Salmonella Dub, playing the Great Northern Hotel in Byron Bay on Wednesday and The Zoo on Thursday.

But Australian audience should prepare themselves for something decidedly different as rather than being DJ-oriented like most drum 'n' bass acts, including New Zealand's premiere jungle act Concord Dawn, Shapeshifter are bonefide musicians, who mix live instruments with samples and computer effects. Shapeshifter's unique drum 'n' bass blend is displayed handsomely on their debut album, Real Time, released last year in New Zealand, which follows hot on the heels of their inaugural EP, DNA.

"We were chucked in the deep end with the EP because we didn't have as much gear or many production skills," says drummer Grenell. "And there weren't many live drum samples from myself. But with the album, we've put a lot more effort into getting live drum sounds."

"We recorded a lot of instruments and live breaks in real time," adds Abram, who admits that Shapeshifter's musical approach inspired their album title. "There's obviously a compromise between organic sounds and sequencing. We want the album to represent our live sound as well as being able to be played out by a DJ who can play it next to other drum 'n' bass tracks."

Real Time is released through New Zealand electronic collective Kog Transmissions' Low Profile sub-label, which is run by the mighty Concord Dawn, and will be distributed in Australia in July by Inertia.

"As the album developed, we had to make a decision as to what was best for us and Kog was the obvious choice," says Abrams. "Electronic music is what they're all about."

Curiously, Shapeshifter are not the only drum 'n' bass act to originate from Christchurch as other prominent Kiwi junglists like Bulletproof and the fABEL label have made the Garden City their home. So what is it about Christchurch that makes it such a fertile breeding ground for drum 'n' bass?

"It's colder down here," suggests Abrams, posing the question: Is drum 'n' bass therefore cold music?

"Nah, it warms you up," interjects Trevethick before Abrams continues. "I don't know what it is but people have taken a big liking to drum 'n' bass in Christchurch. There are lots of DJs and people trying to produce drum 'n' bass and there are lots of clubs and parties. House is pretty quiet in Christchurch. Drum 'n' bass, hip-hop and trance styles are pretty big and dub is going off. Everything but house, basically."