It's an impressive list by anyone's standards, but particularly so for a ramshackle group of North Shore boys, all aged under 22.
Joining Edward Knowles and Callum Martin (guitar) are Sven Pettersen (guitar), Jacob Moore (drums) and Karel Chabera (bass).
"They just seem to like us more than normal people like us," laughs Knowles, when asked if he can explain the phenomenon.
"We've been really lucky," adds Martin. "More often than not they've approached us, which is lovely. It blows your mind."
For those unfamiliar with the band's rapid rise to prominence, here's a quick recap:The band caught the eye of Britain's NME magazine in 2005, at local industry showcase Resonate. Three months later, they joined the NME New Music Tour in the UK.
The boys were soon signed to Sony BMG and in 2006, they moved to London, where they recorded their lauded debut album Hunting Whales, released the following year.
To promote the album, the band spent most of 2007 on the road and played close to 110 shows throughout Britain and Europe. As the year came to a close, the record company had some bad news. They were ending their contract.
"It's just the way the record industry is," says Knowles with a shrug, "it's all falling apart.
"They let go of all the smaller bands and we were one of them. All the projects went, they just kept the Foo Fighters and JT."
It provided the impetus the band needed to come home.
And, says Knowles, they're happy to be here: "We're comfortable here. It fits our psyche. We go on tours and make records. That's what we want and that's what we're doing."
It also allowed them to make their second album in their own time, on their own terms.
"In about December, we were like 'we're going to record an album in February. Screw the rules and everything like that, we're going to record an album in three weeks and we're going to release it.'
"And we did and it's awesome so we're going to keep with that plan," he grins.
The album, Alice by the Moon, was born from their London days. A third album is on the cards.
"We've always been really sure of wanting to do more," explains the curly-haired Martin. "There's no problem with wanting to do more. We're lucky to have a bit of drive in us, a bit of willpower."
But equally, he says, they need to suppress those urges and lock them away for a bit so they don't get too far ahead of themselves.
They are also pursuing other avenues outside the band, at university and working odd jobs. It's not all that different from their lives before London, with one notable exception.
"We're not chasing after record companies anymore," says Martin.
Knowles grins: "We learned it's best just to do it by yourself."
SEE THEM
• The Checks play at 10 Bar on Friday.
- Joanna Hunkin
