Music
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Legacy and Guitars
How to redesign your style without loosing the throne
By Daniel Casas (2008)
Señor Loop - MCMLXXXII (Independent)
4 STARS
Psycodelia, blues, rock, and more Panamanian surprises.
Four years have passed since Señor Loop released Madretambor. An ingenious production that consolidated the band as one of the best in their country's rock history. Their new record, MCMLXXXII, is an exercise at this moment more surprising than its predecessor.
Discovering what goes on inside a group in little more than 40 months is very uncertain, especially in a world driven by immediateness and urgency. But this new recording evidences a substantial change. You should submit to memory the reggae beats, funk ambiances and the Caribbean flavor that identified Señor Loop in the past. The band is anew. MCMLXXXII is different, very different. Its not that the fine syncopation and magical soul have disappeared. What happens is that there is only one starring role: rock. That's why guitars are a mayor player in the middle of a great record and a very compact and astonishing production.
- Rolling Stone LLC
Discography
Eps:
Vol 1. (2001)
Full-lenght CDs:
Madretambor (2004)
MCMLXXXII (2008)
Singles:
Senor Loop Llega al Sarao y se Roba tu Pareja (2004)
Daigoro (2005)
Donde Quieras (2008)
Bocas Town (2008)
Insensato (2009)
Malhumox (2009)
Photos
Bio
Señor Loop are from Panama, not the first place you think of when looking for rock music. But out of that bubbling melting pot they’ve managed to mix the perfect rock and roll storm: sonic intensity brewed with restrained elegance in a dense, dark, tropical atmosphere.
Formed in 1999, the band consists of Rodrigo “Lilo” Sanchez (guitar, vocals, drums) Carlos Ucar (bass), Iñaki Iriberri (guitar, keyboards, drums) and Carlos Icaza (drums). All are original members, except Icaza joined the band in 2007, after the departure of drummer Carlos “Kaito” Sanchez (Lilo’s brother).
In 2001, Señor Loop releases their first e.p. titled Vol.1, which defined the basis that would become the bands signature blend of seemingly disparate styles. After Vol. 1, Señor Loop has released 2 full length albums, Madretambor (2004) and MCMLXXXII (2008) further refining their signature sound.
All of Señor Loop’s recordings have been independently produced and recorded by Iriberri, and the band has shied away from massive local television or radio promotion, trying to keep close control over all its audiovisual output. The band also works closely with local underground artists for the production of its live shows. For the recording of Madretambor, the band set up their studio on a desolate cabin on the edge of the Panamanian rainforest, near the Baru volcano. When it came time to record 2008’s MCMLXXXII, the studio was moved once again to an abandoned house located in an ex US military base on the edge of the Panama Canal.
Since 2005, they have travelled yearly to Costa Rica, where they have amassed a good-sized following that always packs their concerts. Besides San Jose, in 2008 the band also travelled for the first time to Guatemala, performing in the renowned Icaro Film Festival.
After doing several hometown concerts during the first half of the year, on June 2009 Señor Loop embarked on a mini-tour of the region, which included 2 nights in Costa Rica, a stint at the 15-year-anniversary of the prestigious Rock Al Parque festival in Bogota, Colombia (the biggest free rock festival in Latin America with over 75,000 in attendance every night), and Caracas, Venezuela, were the band played one night alongside Tom Cary from Spain, and was the headlining international band for the 19th edition of the Festival Nuevas Bandas.
Señor Loop’s work has appeared in a large number of listener polls and critics' lists. In 2005, Madretambor was ranked as one of the top albums of the year by Rolling Stone Latin America magazine. In 2008 that same publication gave their album MCMLXXXII four stars and also ranked it as one of the year’s best. Señor Loop has also received notable mentions from many well-known Latin American artists, such as Julieta Venegas, Calle 13, and Ruben Blades, who have recognized the band as one of the most interesting up-and-coming artists on the Latin American scene.
The band is currently in Panama City working on pre-production of their third full length album.
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