The British pop/punk scene has never really been known as a hotbed of satire, but Koopa have managed to change that perception with sharp and funny lyrics, married to catchy hooks...
This talented trio spawned back in 2002 when 15-year-old
Ollie Cooper, who had already been writing and performing
for a number of years, decided to do something productive
with his song ideas. His brother and soon to be drummer Stu, suggested that Ollie should present his ideas to a friend, songwriter and bass player Joe Murphy, who also ran his own studio.
Initially, the trio experimented by recording five or six songs and after hearing the results, they realised they were on to something and decided to form the band.
Originally calling themselves "Elastic Flange" the boys went
into the studio for a few months to record some new tracks
and start rehearsing. A further four tracks were produced,
two of which stuck out from the rest, catchy pop tune
"Friday" and the thoughtful "Parents Vs Kids".
The next twelve months were very busy for the boys outside
of the band, school, college and heavy work commitments
meant they only managed a few gigs, one of which in August
2003 was a local band competition, which they won. It was
at this point the band changed its name to Koopa.
In early 2004 the band signed a management contract with
Big G and a recording contract with Mad Cow Records, as
both shared the bands hard working ethics and Koopa quickly made a massive impact on the national music scene!
When it comes to playing Live, the band are certainly no strangers to the stage. The last 18 months have seen them perform to crowds ranging from 300 to 30,000. As well as playing along side Britpop legends Space, Westlife, Son of Dork, Friday Hill, Ned's Atomic Dustbin, NND & Freefaller, they have been very busy headlining their own shows up and down the country, building a massive fan base along the way. That, along with road shows, festivals and their constant "get out there" attitude, have all combined to make Koopa's live performances tight, very professional and extremely entertaining. Ollie and Joe have an electric on-stage chemistry that makes audiences warm to them very quickly.
They have also made very clever use of the Internet, which explains why the band's official mailing list continues to expand impressively daily. The band's 'MySpace' page has attracted massive attention with over 145,000 downloads and an ever growing army of fans which stands to date at some 19,000+, growing daily. This includes 1,000's of fans up and down the UK as well as many from overseas and as far away as the USA, Japan and Australia. The band feel that connecting with these fans is something that is more than important and they make every effort to reply personally to the many messages and comments they receive daily. Because of this, fans are quick to embrace Koopa and there are now many ‘fan- sites’ to be found on the internet and the band have over 1500 active Street Team members in the UK alone. Street Team Koopa are extremely dedicated and help spread the word. They and are affectionately known as Kooparites and distribute all manner of Koopa material including flyers and CD's to everyone and anyone willing to listen!
The future's bright - The future's Koopa! |
|