Sol3 Mio is better than One Direction. The New Zealand operatic trio joked that they are not just better dancers than the British boyband, but better looking as well.

Baritone Moses McKay and his tenor cousins, brothers Pene and Amitai Pati, has just released their self-titled album in November, but has beating their fellow Kiwis at the charts already, including the now-international phenomenon Lorde.

Their “Sol3 Mio” album both topped the top-selling albums and top-selling New Zealand albums charts of 2013, leaving Lorde’s “Pure Heroine” sitting at second place.

McKay has an idea why they were able to quickly climb charts, saying they simply have fun.

Comparing themselves to the Three Tenors (Placido Domingo, Jose Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti), he told the Sydney Morning Herald, “They were the last group who did what we do now, individual opera singers who have fun when they get up on stage. But we are different of course, we are one baritone and a tenor.”

They are also different from One Direction, whose fans are mostly teen or younger girls.

“But we are different from One Direction too because where they were formed as a group we are individual singers who come together,” McKay explained.

“We are better dancers than them too and definitely better looking.”

He added, “But our music is very close to home and we really make sure we put all our characters and personality into it, we are New Zealanders from a Samoan background so it is important to us to tell our stories.”

The group’s album is currently number one at the ARIA Classical/Crossover Chart, holding onto the top spot for six consecutive weeks.

They have also just announced their first Australian tour, which will kick off in October.

Sole3 Mio Australian tour dates:

October 16 – Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre
October 17 – Jupiter’s Casino, Gold Coast
October 19 – Crown Theatre, Perth
October 21 – Adelaide Entertainment Centre Theatre
October 22 – The Star Even Theatre, Sydney
October 24 – Arts Centre Melbourne, Hamer Hall
October 26 – Royal Theatre, Canberra
October 28 – Civic Theatre, Newcastle