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Unknowns Koopa could become the first unsigned group to land a UK top 40 chart position since the chart rules changed at the turn of the year.
Unofficial midweek sales figures suggest the Colchester outfit's download-only single 'Blag, Steal & Borrow' is currently number 17 in the chart, though they are expected to drop to the lower half of the 40 by Sunday. Still, quite the feat, eh?
Chart rules were changed on January 1st to count all digital single sales, regardless of availability on the high street, in a bid to encourage a more diverse chart. Nowadays, bands sans record deals who sell tracks via approved download services are eligible for the weekly countdown. Koopa have apparently benefited considerably from text message downloads.
"You don't need to be dictated to by the big boys, by the record labels. You can release a song and if you've got the fanbase and people buy it, you'll get into the charts - it's great." So says bassist Joe Murphy.
I just listened to this single (click here if you must, too). I feel saddened that the chart, obselete though it is, will not only be subjected to reappearances from the likes of The Kooks, Snow Patrol and The Automatic, but also the emergence of this sub-Fall Out Boy rot.
Hopefully the unsigned and the good will be making their prescence felt soon enough.
