Drax Project will open all three of the pop star's Auckland stadium shows before he moves on for three more shows in Dunedin. And before that they'll play one of the country's biggest music festivals, Auckland City Limits.
A Kiwi band has landed the gig of a lifetime opening for Ed Sheeran on the biggest stadium tour to ever hit New Zealand.
Drax Project will open all three of the pop star's Auckland stadium shows before he moves on for three more shows in Dunedin. And before thatthey'll play one of the country's biggest music festivals, Auckland City Limits.
These audiences will be "way bigger than anything [they've] done before, by far", and all this from a band which started out busking on the streets of Wellington and has only been on the scene for a few years.
The band - Sam Thomson, Shaan Singh, Matt Beachen and Ben O'Leary - entered the New Zealand music scene in 2014 and have become festival favourites, released two hit EPs and are currently working on their first full-length album, slated for release this year.
When we meet in Auckland, the foursome excitedly talk over each other as they take stock of how far they've come.
"We definitely didn't see the Ed Sheeran thing happening - if you'd told me that a few years ago when we were busking, I'd think you were crazy," says drummer Beachen.
"But it's kind of funny, everything is relative," Singh cuts in. "Back then we bought this really crappy car and it was like our band vehicle and it was the worst car ever, but we were stoked because it meant that we didn't have to borrow someone else's car to take our gear down. And now we get to travel in a plane."
The biggest life change?
"The hotel we're staying in tonight, that's the first time we have slippers - that's dope. That's the best thing ever. It's like; 'Do I get to take these home, does someone else use these?' We're not used to that sort of thing."
But they're keeping their feet firmly on the ground, counting both Auckland City Limits and the Ed Sheeran slots as learning experiences on the way to even greater things.
"From when I was young, [my goals] haven't really changed. I really wanted to play Rhythm and Vines and that happened, but it doesn't get less cool. And ACL ... you don't really get used to that, it's still awesome every time," Singh says.
Thomson clarifies: "I don't think there's a limit on what we want to do - we have specific goals of what we want to do but it's not like we're ever done. We just want to keep working, we want to make real good music and we don't want to put any limitation on how far it can go."
LOWDOWN: Who: Drax Project What: Opening for Ed Sheeran, March 24-26 Where: Mt Smart Stadium Also: Playing Auckland City Limits on Saturday at 12.45pm on the Aroha Stage.
