Important Information

Loop

CareerLoop was formed in 1986 by Robert Hampson (vocals, guitar), with his then girlfriend Becky Stewart on drums. Bex was soon replaced by John Wills (The Servants) and Glen Ray, with James Endeacott on guitar. Initially releasing records on their own Head label, their first release was 1987's '16 Dreams', with debut album Heaven's End following later that year. The band's psychedelic/drone rock gained comparisons with Spacemen 3, much to the latter's annoyance.Ray and Bex left, to be replaced by Endeacott, Wills and Neil MacKay, the band also being signed up by Chapter 22 Records, returning with a more polished sound with the 'Collision' single in 1988. Second album Fade Out followed in 1989, reaching No. 51 on the UK album chart. Endeacott left the band in 1988, Scott Dowson joined the following year. They changed labels again to Beggars Banquet subsidiary Situation Two, releasing the 'Arc-Lite' single in 1989 and the third and final studio album A Gilded Eternity in 1990.The band split in 1991, with Hampson briefly joining Godflesh before forming Main with Dowson. Hampson's Main project was discontinued in 2006 and while he now releases under his own name in 2010 he announced the return of Main, albeit as a collaborative project with other sound artists. Wills and Mackay went on to form The Hair and Skin Trading Company, which last released in 1995. Wills now performs and records as Pumajaw.Loop recorded three Peel sessions for John Peel (11 August 1987, 14 June 1988 and 21 January 1990). A collection of these sessions entitled Wolf Flow was released in 1992. Following the split Loop's official studio albums were re-released on their Reactor label. Their sound was influenced by Krautrock and No Wave influences and relied heavily on three chord riffs. Some of the records featured cover versions of Suicide, The Pop Group and Can tracks. The band played at the Reading Festival in 1989.Hampson's MySpace pages referred to friendly pressure to again re-release the Loop albums and these were eventually released in November 2008 on the Reactor label.ReformationLoop reformed for 2013 and 2014 activities, as presented by a statement from Robert Hampson. The line-up includes the original Gilded Eternity era members Robert Hampson, John Wills, Neil Mackay and Scott Dowson.In November 2013, the band played their first comeback show and also co-curate the final holiday camp edition of the All Tomorrow's Parties festival in Camber Sands, England. They will play in April 2014 as headliner of the Roadburn Festival. They will also appear at the Primavera Sound festival in Barcelona in May 2014.