Richter is an electronic rock band from Buenos Aires, Argentina.
History
The Beginning
Richter was founded in 1999 by bassist Gustavo Scheller (ex Los Paganos) and keyboardist Nan (ex Rahez), with drummer JD5, singer Capi Sands, replaced a few months later by singer and electronic musician Zenitram, and guitarist Tano Suarez, replaced by John John after he left the band in 2003. In 2000 the band was highlighted by their show in the TV program "Volver Rock" with Ilya Kuryaki & The Valderramas, in Users Magazine's MP3 II Compilation with some of their first demos, and in Tower Records's Pulse Magazine, that considered them one of the most promising bands in Argentina. A demo tape in 1999 and an EP in 2000 anticipated some of the tracks later included in their first album.
Epicentro
In 2001 the band released their debut album "Epicentro", with 13 tracks including "Universo Kelper", "Cien Mil Espinas", "Dagobah Disco", "Babel", and the promotional single "Ciudad Satélite", Richter's first music video, directed by Ezequiel Berra. "Ciudad Satélite" entered rotation on main Argentine music channels. In November, the band performed live "Epicentro" in the official album presentation at a sold-out YMCA Theatre in Buenos Aires, starting what it was called the "Gira Satélite" (Satellite Tour), with more than 90 shows in Buenos Aires, Santa Fé and the Atlantic Coast all along 2002 and 2003.
During this years, the band collaborated in several tribute albums: to Los Fabulosos Cadillacs with their version of "Galapagos" (2001), to Madonna in Spanish, with a version of "Justify My Love" (2001), to Los Brujos with "Canción del Cronopio" (2002) and to Los Peligrosos Gorriones with "Por Tres Monedas" (2002). In 2003 they produced a powerful version of "A Question of Time" for the Argentine tribute to Depeche Mode "South Celebration", acclaimed by Latin American and European critics. Richter's version would be later included in European compilation "A Metal Tribute to Depeche Mode 5" (2008).
Planetas Planos
Richter's second record, "Planetas Planos", released in early 2004 by the Argentine label Polígono Sónico was actually a 6 track mini album, including their first radial hit "Televidente", performed live in Mario Pergolini's Cual Es? program, on Rock & Pop FM, one of the most prestigious radios in Argentina.
The new material went deeper in the integration between distorted guitars and electronic grooves. Communication, media and message became the album core concept, represented by the idea of the antenna in the cover art. The music video for "Televidente" featured the band as a kind of orange-dressed commando team that went around the city delivering banners with the iconic cover art antenna.
"El Enemigo Duerme en Casa", "Nunca Me Vas a Entender","A lo Lejos" y "Amapola" showed the most dark, pop and punk influences of all Richter's music so far.
Live performances during the "Gira Interplanetaria" (Interplanetary Tour) (2004–2005) made the band be rewarded with critical acclaim as one of the most important rising artists in the country. They performed in a band-special emission of the program "Cultura Cero" on Channel 7, where they anticipated tracks of their next album "Danzallamas".
Danzallamas and the "Danzallamas Tour" "Danzallamas", Richter's third record, released in September 2005 by Polígono Sónico label, and re-released two years later by the Argentine-Mexican label Loshe Music with two bonus tracks, represented a step ahead in the band sound, lyrics and aesthetics.
The new material extended Richter's spectrum to new styles, daring to unexplored rhythms and atmospheres, and deepened the most edgy, forceful and radical side of the rock and electronics mixture, with more aggressive guitars over more compact sequences. The melodies and the power of the sound were combined with the acid poetry of the lyrics, full of sophisticated irony, paper icons, selfishness, destructive modernism, lack of common sense. The concepts of game and danger, reflected in the cover art, stayed all along the album.
The music video for promotional single "Casa Fantasma", an acid critic to yellow press, entered rotation on the most important Latin American and Argentine TV channels. And "Te Vas a Berlin", second video from the album, represented a step ahead in Richter's visuals, with careful, dark and futuristic aesthetics.
Also "El País de Maradona", "La Virgen de la Pasarela", "Kill" and "Caso Escaso" became classics in the band's performances, highly celebrated by the audience.