LoOp

Discordant, elusive, and mesmerizing in equal measure, Loop cast a shadowy, hypnotic aura that stood apart from the dominant currents of British pop during their era. Their approach drew from the Stooges and Can, reviving space rock alongside peers like Spacemen 3 through sustained drones that blended stark dissonance with austere allure. Though active only briefly from the late 1980s into the early 1990s, the trio of albums they produced then continued to captivate audiences long afterward. Following the original lineup’s 2013 reunion, a revised configuration of the group resumed live performances, issuing Sonancy in 2022—their first album in 32 years.

The band originated in London in 1986 when vocalist and guitarist Robert Hampson, who professed knowledge of just four chords at the outset, assembled the initial unit with drummer Bex (Becky Stewart) and bassist Glen Ray. Their debut single, “16 Dreams,” emerged with raw, feedback-laden textures that signaled a deep garage affinity. Drummer John Wills soon replaced Bex, establishing a more elemental rhythmic base that underpinned the 1987 debut album Heaven’s End, which earned notice for its thick layers of distortion.

A 1987 compilation titled The World in Your Eyes gathered earlier singles and B-sides. After moving to Chapter 22 and adding bassist Neil MacKay, the band delivered the 1988 12-inch Collision, then followed with their second album, Fade Out, that November. More than a year later they surfaced again via the Arc-Lite single, now on Situation 2 and augmented by second guitarist Scott Dawson. The 1990 release A Gilded Eternity, regarded as their strongest studio effort, preceded the group’s dissolution. Subsequent archival material included the live set Dual and the BBC sessions collection Wolf Flow. In the aftermath, MacKay and Wills formed Hair & Skin Trading Company, while Hampson and Dawson founded the experimental outfit Main.

During the 1990s the catalog fell out of print, yet Reactor reissued it comprehensively in 2008. Five years afterward the original four members—Hampson, Wills, MacKay, and Dawson—regrouped for concerts and helped program the “End of an Era, Pt. 2” segment of the All Tomorrow’s Parties Festival at Camber Sands in East Sussex, England. Further dates took them to Barcelona’s Primavera Sound festival in May 2014. Later that year Hampson assembled a fresh lineup featuring guitarist Dan Boyd, bassist Hugo Morgan, and drummer Wayne Maskel. Through the ATP label they began releasing new material with Array 1 in June 2015, timed alongside shows in the U.K. and Iceland. In 2018 Loop appeared at London’s Meltdown Festival, curated by the Cure’s Robert Smith and also including Mogwai, My Bloody Valentine, Nine Inch Nails, and additional acts. Their fourth studio album, Sonancy, arrived in 2022, extending the band’s heavy minimalism with occasional post-punk inflections.