The Winnie Coopers explore thewonders of hip hop

Thu 17th May, 2007 in Features

Did anyone else ever notice that Kevin Arnold never actually said anything out loud on The Wonder Years? Voiceovers, people… That kid was practically a mute.

The Winnie Coopers may be named after his long standing tweenie crush, but they have no such problem with self expression. The central themes of their songs, chasing the Mr Whippy Van, worrying about homework and wondering what to say to doe-eyed girls, sit right at home with the prepubescent musings of Kevin and his pals.

“I guess that’s why we called the group The Winnie Coopers, it sort of evokes that childhood innocence, and I guess that’s what we tried to do with the name and whole project.” explains Charlie Thomson aka The Educator. “I think sometimes the pressure of life sometimes cause us to focus on things that really at the end of the day really aren’t important. And sometimes we can loose those childhood memories.”

So if Kevin Arnold and his bespectacled friend Paul Pfeiffer started a Hip Hop group, is this what it would sound like? Not far off, give or take the Aussie vernacular. The Winnie Coopers are vocally in touch with their inner child. A listen to their latest tracks will have you thinking you are smack bang in the middle of the school yard, with flash backs to the canteen, playground rhymes and acne ridden faces you didn’t even know you still remembered. The tracks are also marked by a questioning attitude and startling honesty that you rarely come across in the world of grownups. It all fits together when Thomson explains that he’s a teacher by day, hip hop artist by night. “I was saying to someone the other day there’s nothing really rockstar about taking assignments to mark on tour, I think our day jobs keep us pretty grounded.”

The Coopers describe themselves as Geek Hip Hop, so have they got the goods to back up their claim to the mantle? “In our group there are actually two school captains and one member of the high school chess team.” Thomson laughs, “I think being a school teacher is a pretty nerdy profession. So I think we are pretty much qualified.”

Since coming together in 2002, the group have attracted a dedicated following amongst university students and other genuinely nerdy folk, and are touring the country this month to serve up a taster of their upcoming album “Worth the Weight”. “We just wanted to make hip hop music that the average Australian nerd could identify and relate to, and since then the band has expanded into a five piece line up with drums, bass, turntables, guitar and vocals, so it’s actually really evolved over the last couple of years.”

The new single Eating Disorder features a cameo by Dizzy Dustin from US group Ugly Duckling, a relationship that came about after The Winnie Coopers won a competition on Triple J’s Hip Hop Show to support Ugly Duckling in 2005. “Through that we built a really good relationship with the guys from Ugly Duckling and we’ve supported them on numerous tours since they’ve been back and forth from the US to Australia.”

The decision to work together was most likely made over a cook-up, “It’s basically just a light hearted view of people that love food too much. If you ever seen a picture of Dizzy, he doesn’t mind eating a few meals in the day.” says Thomson, “There’s a strong food theme running throughout it [the album] and I think that’s just because it’s a good way to make sure you get people to rehearsals and gigs if you promise them food.”

“Sometimes some of the issues and themes that are raised in music today are a bit too heavy and sometimes can be a bit too serious. We want to talk about things that are positive and relevant to our lives, and that people enjoy listening to.”

Upcoming Gigs:
18 May, 2007 at First Floor
Located in, Melbourne Vic
with Offcutts
20 May, 2007 at Beach Road Hotel
Located in, Bondi, Sydney NSW

with True Live, Bliss n Eso,
26 May, 2007 at Sodens Hotel
Located in, Albury Vic

with Offcutts
27 May, 2007 at The Beach Road Hotel
Located in, Bondi, Sydney NSW

The Roots Rap Reggae Festival
9 June, 2007 14:00 at The Columbian Bar
Located in, Fortitude Valley, Brisbane Qld