Fresh from their two-week tour of Australia and New Zealand, Dartz were building a drum kit in a random yard in Christchurch just before 12pm on Saturday.
The set marked the first of four cities the band would play in over the course of 12 hours, all in the name of celebrating Box Day.
“Crate Day is about everyone getting together on the first day of summer, catching up, having a drink,” said founder and lead singer Danz.
He acknowledged the heavy drinking culture surrounding the day, which began in 2009 as a promotional event for radio station The Rock, but said the day had taken on a life of its own.
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Sinead Gill/Stuff
Dartz, from left – Clark Mathews, Rollyz, Crispy and Danz.
There was hope that culture had changed over time. In the past, the day has been associated with an increase in alcohol-related injuries and even death in the case of retired doctor Anton De Croos in Invercargill in 2020.
“We’re embracing the ‘share a crate with your friends’ vibe rather than finishing a crate situation alone,” said Clark Mathews, who played bass.
“Our connection with box day started a few years ago. We put a bunch of gear in a van in Wellington and drove around town and played 14 parties in one day,” he said.
Despite their growing success since then – including a debut album that topped the NZ album charts in November, a ditch tour and an upcoming slot at Laneway festival – they’ve stayed true to their “box day shenanigans reputation” , Mathews said.
Around box day, the band put out a call for hosts on social media. Instead of asking for money, Dartz asked the hosts to provide the hard-to-travel gear, such as a drum kit and amps.
Christchurch resident Sam Elliott saw the tweet and immediately volunteered his Linwood yard.
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Dartz lead singer Danz hoped the culture would shift towards sharing a crate between a group of friends rather than trying to finish one alone.
“I thought I could borrow them [the gear]but nah, I had to hire him,” he said.
It cost him $600, but he said “why not?”
“I’m a fan… they’re probably the most hard-working, gracious, polite band in the country.”
At 2pm the band were on a flight to Wellington for a 4pm party before the second flight of the day.
Their gig in Auckland was at 8pm, then after a drive to Hamilton, 11pm marked their last show of the day.
“I’m horrified,” Mathews said, to which Danz quickly pointed out, “it was your idea.”
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Peter the cat enjoyed attention during the day and was a fan of music, Elliott said.
“It was, but I’m optimistic … as long as the weather holds up at this particular time in each particular city, we’re going to have a good one.”
The band described their sound as “if Dave Dobbyn was born in 1995” and “if Kiwi music was put in a blender”.
“Half of it is music, half of it is bullshit,” Danz said.