We would like to say a big THANK YOU to everyone who came to the Union Chapel on the 22nd Nov. It was a truly magical evening, with so many talented artists all giving their talent freely.
Watch our for new vids of the event coming soon......
NEWS!
John's blog...coming soon, find out what he's been up to on the road! Hit the Blog tab at the top of the page to view.
Big thank you to Brad Inglis @ UB for gig pics!
NEWS FLASH------NEWS FLASH-------NEWS FLASH----
Nizlopi - Live For One Night only.
What an amazing night it was?
Luke and John back on stage together after a 3 year break!
Watch out for pictures and videos of the gig coming soon!!
A Nizlopi Biography.
Nizlopi were Luke Concannon and John Parker, two friends from Leamington Spa who wrote and played music together from the ages of thirteen to thirty. Luke handled the heartfelt lyrics, the soulful vocals, and his beloved guitar, whilst JP set jaws-dropping with his masterful double-bass playing, breathtaking human beat-boxing, and a little extra guitar playing of his own.
They always went for it in all they did, writing and performing songs full of hope passion and truth. With a background in the Celtic folk tradition and a love of jazz and hip-hop, together these two young men created a sound of their own with a huge national and international following. John and Luke decided not to wait to be signed, but to get their music out there straight away. And with the help of fans, family and friends who loved the music, this is what they did.
A publishing deal with the young, brilliant and maverick Joe Taylor at Nuxx lent massive support as John and Luke turned down recording contracts with Sony, Chrysalis and EMI, preferring to take the independent route. At the end of 2005 they achieved astonishing chart success with their JCB Song, which leapt up from the underground unforeseen to go straight to number one, making history.
Luke and John were introduced to the mad worlds of Top Of The Pops, and Richard and Judy, disarming all with their energy and musicality (the only ones on TOTPs not to mime. Both times!). But chart victory didn’t happen overnight. From the release of their debut album ‘Half These Songs Are About You’, recorded in a shed at the bottom of the garden, Nizlopi earned a reputation as one of the hardest working bands in the country. This extraordinary duo played a never-ending run of live shows in venues ranging from fans’ living rooms, to sold out appearances at London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire, to festivals as prestigious as Glastonbury, The Big Chill, Bestival, and Wireless. Nizlopi’s aim was always to break down the barriers between performer and audience. Putting music at the centre, their gigs were a welcome return to the electrifying experience of live music. Playing in the heart of the crowd acoustically to open the show, writing new songs there and then, getting guest MCs up from the audience, improvising and turning the whole crowd into a harmonized gospel choir, a thrilling, uplifting and seriously funky evening, along with hard-hitting songs from a band who played every show like it was their last.
September 2006 saw the release of Nizlopi’s limited edition ‘ExtraOrdinary”, a six track release including the songs ‘Glastonbury’, ‘Helen’, and ‘Homage to Young Men’, a collaboration with activist/poet Alastair McIntosh. They then took themselves across the channel playing to fifty thousand fans throughout November on tour with hipster Jamie Cullum. The day they returned overland to the UK they took up the surreal invitation to "rock" the prestigious Wembley Arena for two sold out nights with Christina Aguilera. In December they joined folk-hero Billy Bragg onstage to perform together at the famous Hackney Empire. 2007 was spent recording their third record ‘Make It Happen’, hitching to Senegal to play with musicians there, and playing 17 British summer festivals. They won a prestigious Impala award for outstanding records sales by an independent artist.
In 2008 they released, ‘Make it Happen’. The guy’s climbed mountains, crossed deserts (quite literally) and sweated blood and tears to make this album the best it could possibly be. The new material featured many of the band's musical friends, including Rory McLeod, Hobbit, Benjamin Zephaniah Jimmy Davis and Tom Richards from Jamie Cullum’s band. The first single from the album was ‘Start Beginning’. In April they launched the album with the ‘Make it Happen tour’. They played the summer festivals and the ‘Last nights on tour’ shows saw out 2008 with a memorable gig at the university of London union. Over the years Nizlopi toured Ireland four times, Performing on some of Ireland's biggest radio and TV shows, including RTE's The Cafe, and The Late Late Show.
Nizlopi took 2009 out, John found a great Double bass teacher, and played (and is still playing) with many great acts around London. Luke Hitch hiked to Palestine, writing songs on route, volunteering, and playing with local musicians. At the beginning of 2010 Nizlopi decided amicably to split up! They are still great friends, will carry on, on their paths, making the best music they can, and hope to play together on different projects in the future. You can see a full statement about this from Luke in the News section. We very much hope that the world carries on Listening to and enjoying Nizlopi. What a wonderful adventure it has been!