to listen to their music now on 
Shapeshifter... Let’s get one thing straight. I have never heard of any of Shapeshifter’s music prior to last Saturday night. I could not guess the name of one of their songs even if there was a gun pointed to my head. That might make me the worst person on the planet to be writing this review… or the best. You have been warned readers, the words in this review are coming from an everyday man’s perspective… and there is nothing you can do about it.
So the review… well the night started at 7:30pm according to some website…. Yes, 7:30pm. First issue, were Shapeshifter playing at a bluelight disco or something? It probably has something to do with the 2am lockout. After slamming some stirfry down my face cooked in record time, I jetted my way down to The Forum. By the time I rocked up Diafrix was centre stage playing to a small yet passionate crowd – quality over quantity baby. Diafrix presented the audience with hauntingly soulful vocals over smooth dub grooves and the smaller crowd allowed a far more intimate experience, and their interaction with the crowd was warm and humbling. They drove the set towards a heavy drum and bass assault at the end just in time for Loot+Pillage.
Loot + Pillage bought some slow grooves that provided a great chillout atmosphere leading into the main event…. and that’s pretty much all there was too his set. I took this drop in decibels as an opportunity to quickly compensate for my lack of Shapeshifter knowledge and I talked to a few of the natural inhabitants at The Forum that evening. I found out very quickly that majority of people were native New Zealand brothers and sisters and were more than happy to share their Shapeshifter opinion. Now if there was a time for testimonials, this was it.
“I FUCKING LOVE SHAPESHIFTER!”
“HAPPY POSITIVE MUSIC!”
“LEADING THE WAY FOR THE NATURAL EVOLUTION OF DRUM AND BASS!”
“HOOKED FROM THEIR FIRST PERFORMANCE!”
I discovered a lot of other information like their humble beginnings, supporting acts back in NZ like Salmonella Dub. Some of the people there had seen Shapeshifter 10 or more times. With that kind of knowledge, you can’t help get excited right? This is where you nod where ever you are sitting and reading this review. Then it began, the introduction for shapeshifter began with bass that shook me to the very soul. A voice yells out “WE ARE GOING TO DANCE MOTHER FUCKERS!!!!” and the crowd screams and jump around like epileptics watching a Japanese cartoon.
So heres a recipe for ya….
3 Keyboard Synthesizers
1 Guitar
1 drum kit
1 saxophone
3 microphones
5 people
Mix that all together and you get Shapeshifter. They took the stage and this is when review starts getting challenging to write. Have you ever been in a situation where everyone around you is screaming their lungs out and your not quite sure exactly why? But then you start screaming anyway because you don’t want to be the odd one out? Welcome to the everyday perspective.
After a few words, Shapeshifter go straight into the music, no playing around with these guys. The energy they commanded from the crowd was enough to power a city for days. Their music was definitely not was I expecting from my experiences with soul and drum n’ bass. Their songs were chock a block of passionate uplifting vocals and bought peace, love and happiness to the now jam packed Forum Theatre. I made friends with some Shapeshifter fanatics and from what I managed to get out of them, I got the impression that they played all their well known songs. For me being an ignorant prick that didn’t mean jack shit. However, I did notice the harmony and freedom in the atmosphere during their set which had the crowd moving and grooving however they wanted too.
I never thought I was say this, but it was a beautiful performance that brings something rare to generation Y. Their performance and music was simple, it was all about people. This is the kind of music that could fuel a world changing movement. Shapeshifter started their set at 10:15pm and ended there set at 11:30pm with a bonus 30 minute encore where they took us out with Believing and One. See that!? See what you can learn in 1 hour and 45 minutes about a band without the internet.
I am not going to ruin the night anymore by re-writing lyrics I scrawled down on my piece of paper in a hopeless attempt to capture the night without any prior research. Their performance was free from the complications we find everywhere else in the world, so i’m gonna keep my review free from the complications. Shapeshifter were great and provided an outstanding performance.
Hey now inthemix, can I get some kind of media pass? No one ever believes I am writing a bloody review when I tell them I am asking questions for an event review. One person name being Tina who gave me a particularly hard time. I swear everyone thinks I’m a bloody stalker or some sleaze trying to mac onto their lady friends. I not asking for a neon sign saying INTHEMIX REVIEWER with a massive arrow pointing at me, just something incognito that I can slap the non-believers with.
ctoafn_DMZ says...
Yeah inthemix, give up the reviewer name badge already ;-)
Kat_in_Japan says...
Wicked review!
adayinthelife says...
Great review geezer. I was up the front with you dude (Cant believe you mentioned my girlfriend Tina and not me... hahaha) Glad you enjoyed it and well done on a great review.