Fingers crossed for gig

Shapeshifter hopes its upcoming gig at the Lake Hawea Hotel will not see a repeat performance of the "crazy weather" last December - but bring your dancing boots just in case.

"It was a bit of a chaotic affair, we weren't able to sound check and we were as flustered as the weather," frontman P. Digsss told the Queenstown Times from Auckland.

"It rained all day, stopped just before we went on stage, then [poured] down again."

The Christchurch-based drum 'n' bass outfit was stoked its latest studio album, The System is a Vampire, went gold this week, he said.

The collective's fourth LP, released three years after Soulstice, knocked Foo Fighters: Greatest Hits off the top of the Official New Zealand Music Chart three days after it was released on November 13.

"It's great to have as an accomplishment . . . It's like being able to have your cake and eat it. Everyone is pretty blown away as it was the last thing on our minds when recording.

"We wanted to make an album that sounded like us live. We've grown and the sound is still Shapeshifter, but our song writing's improved and we've let our influences come out."

The vocalist said he felt chart success was an achievement, especially in an age of burning and downloading music.

But he still believed the album format was relevant and said he enjoyed collecting records and displaying his favourite sleeve artwork in his home.

The hardworking band celebrates its 10th anniversary this year and is gearing up for its summer tour, which begins at the Mangawhai Tavern on Boxing Day and takes in the Lake Hawea Hotel on December 29.

The European festival circuit and their own tour beckon in the northern hemisphere summer.

However, a Shapeshifter performance in Queenstown seems unlikely - the band experienced "sound issues" the last time it played the Memorial Hall, P. Digsss said.

"We don't want to be held back by the size of the venue. We're not prepared to go sub-standard with the set. A mini-festival would do it right."

• The Shapeshifter Summer Tour, Tuesday, December 29, Lake Hawea Hotel.

With an acoustic set by Tiki Taane and support by British reggae act JStar and Queenstown's own Suns