Formed in West London, the house duo known as the Shapeshifters reached the summit of the U.K. singles chart in 2004 with the very first single they issued, "Lola's Theme." Further successes followed, among them "Back to Basics" in 2005, "Incredible" in 2006 and "Sensitivity" in 2006, while their catalog also grew to include both DJ-mix collections such as Shapeshifters Present House Grooves (2004) and original studio albums such as Sound Advice (2006). The pair established their own independent outlet, Nocturnal Groove, yet maintained ongoing ties to major dance imprints including Positiva and Defected, with numerous productions subsequently licensed around the world. Their remixing credits encompass high-profile names such as George Michael on the 2004 track "Flawless [Go to the City]" and Christina Aguilera on the 2006 single "Ain't No Other Man." The Shapeshifters likewise built a reputation as a club DJ pairing, most notably across Ibiza, and occasionally appeared live as a full band. In the United States they are officially listed as Shape:UK owing to a trademark conflict involving the Los Angeles alternative rap outfit Shape Shifters.
The lineup consists of Max Reich, born in Sweden, and Simon Marlin, born in England; the two first crossed paths in Gothenburg, Sweden, in 1996. At the time Reich was emerging as a techno producer while Marlin held an A&R post at Downboy Recordings; Marlin would later become Reich’s manager. After issuing several low-profile tracks, Reich delivered his debut full-length album, Moonstomp, on Millennium Records in 1996, followed by Swedish Workout in 1997 and Few Hours Left in 1998, each accompanied by various 12-inch releases on the same label. Concurrently he teamed with Samuel Malm under several aliases, among them Repulsor (Glütt, 1996; Double Action, 1997), Barbed Wire (Draatphunk, 1997), Rebound (Outrage, 1997) and Fused (Selected Works, 1997; This Party Sucks!, 1998).
In 1999 Marlin secured a Sony major-label deal for the Fused project shared by Reich and Malm, which began with a reissue of the This Party Sucks! 12-inch. Adding vocalist Petra Hallberg, the pair completed the album Audio, released on Sony in 2001; its three singles were "Saving Mary," "Twisted" and "Terror," the last of which Danny Tenaglia included as the closing track on his 2002 mix album Back to Basics. Working alone under the name Glider, Reich put out the independent single Let's Groove on Glider Music in 2001 and later signed to Multiply Records for the 2003 release Riding High. At the same time he and Marlin began shaping what became "Lola's Theme," titled after Marlin’s wife. Recognizing its promise, the duo launched Nocturnal Groove and introduced the Shapeshifters name with the single’s first release.
An instrumental version of "Lola's Theme" circulated promotionally in 2003 before the official Nocturnal Groove edition appeared in 2004 and was swiftly licensed by EMI’s Positiva subsidiary for wider distribution. Built around a horn sample taken from Johnnie Taylor’s 1982 hit "What About My Love," the track stood out at the 2004 Miami Winter Music Conference and ascended straight to number one on the U.K. singles chart upon its major-label launch. Two double-disc DJ-mix sets, Shapeshifters Present House Grooves (2004) and Shapeshifters Present House Grooves, Vol. 2 (2005), arrived in the aftermath, while the duo earned a 2004 Brit Award nomination. Reich also joined Carl Ryden as Poker Pets for the 2004 Nocturnal Groove single "Lovin' You," which Positiva likewise licensed.
"Back to Basics" followed as the next Shapeshifters single in 2005 and reached the English Top Ten. The following year brought their first proper studio album, Sound Advice (2006), featuring vocalist Jenna Gibbons and yielding three further hits: "Incredible" (number 12), "Sensitivity" (number 40) and "If in Doubt Go Out." EMI Records handled the European release while Ultra Records issued it in the United States. Two new productions, "Pusher" and "New Day," appeared on Positiva in 2007 and charted at number 52 and number 72 respectively. In 2008 the Shapeshifters moved to the Defected label and issued the Treadstone/Chime single, whose B-side reworks the 1990 Orbital classic.
