While most teens are hoping to make extra cash working at supermarkets or fast food outlets this summer, four Otumoetai College students want to do their holiday job in rock star style.
The members of college band Irrelephant - Logan Stewart, Josh Rowley, and brothers Mike and Mat Patrick - are
looking for summer gigs.
Three of the band's members are off to tertiary study next year, so any spare cash will come in handy for their fees.
"We play a mix of covers and originals," guitarist Josh said. Their covers repertoire includes Kings Of Leon, The Black Seeds and Fat Freddy's Drop.
Irrelephant comes with impressive credentials - this year they won Best Song at the Smokefreerockquest regionals, Starquest and the Otumoetai College Talent Quest, and Mat won the Musicianship award at the Smokefreerockquest regionals.
They also came second in last year's Smokefree Rockquest regionals and won the Tauranga Primal Battle of the Bands.
This summer is a last hurrah for the band members, who met at Otumoetai Intermediate in Year 9.
Lead singer Mike, 18, is heading off to Victoria University in Wellington next year to study music composition, while Logan is going to Auckland to study audio engineering at the SAE Institute. Josh will stay in Tauranga to study at the New Zealand Radio Training School and Mat will complete secondary school at Otumoetai College.
But when it comes to booking gigs, summer is the best time to do it, when "everyone wants music", Mike said.
