Today's surprise is...
KOOPA!
Colchester trio Koopa are one Essex band that really are doing well, having recently returned from the USA where they were recording their debut album with Mark Hoppus (formerly of Blink182), the pop punkers released their first single from the album, Gimme It Back in November, and are currently offering the track for free download on their website!

Click here to visit the Koopa website and download their latest single

Meanwhile, here's a short interview with the boys taken from Noisy issue 4:

The internet - if used properly - can be an extremely valuable tool. Just ask Koopa - a three-piece pop-punk band from Essex! The band, who formed in 2003, discovered the advantages of internet promotion in 2005 and began promoting themselves online, building up a huge, dedicated fan base across the country. A year later, they have achieved phenomenal success - with a chart single, TV appearances and a live reputation that simply can’t be beaten.

Labelled by many as the ‘British Blink 182’, this three-piece continue to go from strength to strength and are releasing their long-awaited debut album very soon. Their first single, ‘No Trend’ was released earlier this year and managed to reach the Top 50 without a major label backing them. ”We booked the best studio we could find,” begins drummer Stu Cooper, when we discuss the single that ultimately launched the bands career. “It was mastered in Hollywood by the same guy who mastered Blink 182’s ‘Take Off Your Pants and Jacket’ album!” The videos for No Trend and its b-side (a cover of The Proclaimers) ‘500 Miles’ were aired on music channels everywhere, and the band were so close to breaking into the mainstream it was unreal. But, despite the efforts made by the band and their fans, they missed that all-important Top 40 by just a few hundred sales.

“It’s a pretty crappy business we’re in really,” comments bassist and vocalist Joe Murphy, “so we were just happy to get it anywhere in the charts.” The band went to every length they could to make the single a success, but, being signed to a small indie label meant they didn’t get the marketing they needed.

“Yeah it’s one of the things we had to consider when we signed to an ‘independent’ label instead of a major,” explains drummer Stu. “But we get to stay true to ourselves and out music the way things are now - we’re not told what to do at all. But it does mean we don’t have the financial backing we would have with a larger label - so we have to work harder.”

And so they have - this band have genuinely put everything they have into making Koopa a success, and there’s not many bands that deserve it as much as them. It’s been a long journey, but hundreds of gigs, thousands of downloads and millions of Myspace plays later, Koopa are finally getting somewhere. And with the dedication and determination these guys have, we can expect even bigger things to come. The future’s bright - the future’s Koopa!

Interview by Sarah Killer Dienamite, first published in Noisy issue 4, Winter 2006/7

Go back to Noisy website home