Sumo (band)
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Sumo was a 1980s
Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, s ...
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...
band, heavily influenced by
post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...
,
reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...
and funk-metal. Led by Italian-born Scottish
Luca Prodan Luca Prodan (17 May 1953 – 22 December 1987) was an Italian-Argentinian musician and singer who rose to fame as the leading vocalist of Sumo, one of the most influential rock bands of Argentina,''Argentina Independent''Lo de Luca: Homage to a R ...
, it remained
underground Underground most commonly refers to: * Subterranea (geography), the regions beneath the surface of the Earth Underground may also refer to: Places * The Underground (Boston), a music club in the Allston neighborhood of Boston * The Underground ...
for most of its short activity but was extremely influential in shaping contemporary
Argentine rock Argentine rock (known locally as ''rock nacional'' , "national rock" in the sense of "local", "not international") is rock music composed or performed by Argentine bands or artists mostly in Spanish. Argentine rock began by recycling hits of Eng ...
.Sumo
en Rock.com.ar Consultado el Retrieved January 28, 2017
Sumo is credited with introducing British post-punk to the Argentine scene, mostly by songs with lyrics in English, and with providing a visceral counterpoint to the progressive and ''
nueva canción Nueva canción (European , ; 'new song') is a left-wing social movement and musical genre in Latin America and the Iberian peninsula, characterized by folk-inspired styles and socially committed lyrics. ''Nueva canción'' is widely recognized to ...
'' influences then dominant in the country's ''
rock en español Rock en español () is a term used widely in the English-speaking world to refer to any kind of rock music featuring Spanish vocals. Compared to English-speaking bands, very few acts reached worldwide success or between Spanish-speaking countri ...
''.


History


Background

Luca Prodan was born in Rome on 17 May 1953Biografía de Luca Prodan
Retrieved January 28, 2017
of Italian and Scottish descent after his family returned from China: His father had set up a prosperous business in ancient Chinese pottery that became untenable after the
Japanese invasion of China The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937–1945) or War of Resistance (Chinese term) was a military conflict that was primarily waged between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. The war made up the Chinese theater of the wider Pacific Th ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. In his youth, Luca was sent to prestigious
Gordonstoun Gordonstoun School is a co-educational independent school for boarding and day pupils in Moray, Scotland. It is named after the estate owned by Sir Robert Gordon in the 17th century; the school now uses this estate as its campus. It is locate ...
College in
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—the same Prince Charles of England attended. He escaped Gordonstoun a year before graduation and moved to London soon after. In the 1970s London Luca worked at
EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British Transnational corporation, transnational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in March 1 ...
and formed his first band, ''The New Clear Heads'', which shared aesthetics with contemporary punk acts like
XTC XTC were an English rock band formed in Swindon in 1972. Fronted by songwriters Andy Partridge (guitars, vocals) and Colin Moulding (bass, vocals), the band gained popularity during the rise of punk and new wave in the 1970s, later playing in ...
, The Fall,
Joy Division Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...
(a name he later translated to Spanish for Sumo's first album ''Divididos por la Felicidad'') and
Wire Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample diameter 40 mm A wire is a flexible strand of metal. Wire is c ...
. After living in
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and
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
—where he was allegedly seen hanging out with
Joy Division Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...
band members—Prodan accepted an invitation from Gordonstoun schoolmate Timmy Mackern to visit his family farm in the Traslasierra zone of Córdoba province in Argentina, thus helping his old friend relax and stay away from
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...
(Luca was devastated by the suicide of his sister Claudia, and her boyfriend). Arriving in 1981, he started composing and recording songs at home in a portable studio he had brought from London. Later, tired of the quiet countryside life, he and Timmy relocated in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
' Hurlingham area, interested to join the town's underground music scene.


Luca in Argentina and early Sumo

Argentina was under a repressive
military dictatorship A military dictatorship is a dictatorship in which the military exerts complete or substantial control over political authority, and the dictator is often a high-ranked military officer. The reverse situation is to have civilian control of the m ...
, and many music and performing art acts kept a low profile to avoid problems with the police—Café Einstein in the Balvanera district was a favorite venue for such programmes as were some pubs in Olivos. Luca soon found musicians willing to join his then innovative reggae-rock vision.Biografía de Sumo (spanish)
Retrieved January 28, 2017
Sumo's initial lineup consisted of Prodan on vocals and guitar, Germán Daffunchio on guitar, Alejandro Sokol on bass, and Stephanie Nuttal (an
English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...
friend of Luca's and former member of the band Manicured Noise) on drums. The first incarnation of Sumo played mostly around Prodan's neighborhood of Hurlingham, in the
Buenos Aires province Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...
, and in Café Einstein. Nuttal had to return to England when the
Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...
( es, Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur) started, so Sokol took on the drums while young Hurlingham neighbour Diego Arnedo joined on bass. Then journalist and later media star Roberto Pettinato was a frequent guest to jam with his saxophone; he ended up joining the band fully shortly after. Because of their lyrics in English, Sumo did not enjoy extensive airplay given to other Argentine bands in the wake of the war. In spite of that, it became a pillar of the underground scene together with
Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota, also known simply as Patricio Rey, Los Redondos or Los Redonditos de Ricota, was a rock band formed in La Plata, Argentina. The group was active from the mid 70s up to the early 2000s. They are known for ...
and
Los Violadores Los Violadores are a rock band from Argentina, pioneers of the punk rock genre in Latin America. History Los Violadores ("The Violators", referring to 'breaking the law', as mentioned in one of their songs, "Violadores de la Ley") was founded in ...
. Sumo music had different sides: hard-edged rock with an experimental touch, influenced by the sound of British
post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-roc ...
acts (e g
Joy Division Joy Division were an English rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist Ian Curtis, guitarist/keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris. Sumner and Hook formed the band after attend ...
, The Fall), funky post-punk guitars and strong dub-like bass lines reminiscent of
A Certain Ratio A Certain Ratio (abbreviated as ACR) are an English post-punk band formed in 1977 in Flixton, Greater Manchester by Peter Terrell (guitar, electronics) and Simon Topping (vocals, trumpet), with additional members Jez Kerr (bass, vocals), Martin ...
and Gang of Four's, and a typically British brand of reggae and
ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...
. After a hiatus due to Prodan's temporary return to
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, the band committed fully to a rock style in 1984 and spun off the Hurlingham Reggae Band. Ricardo Mollo was added on guitar and Alberto ''Superman'' Troglio replaced Sokol on drums—even if he stayed in the band as a vocalist, bassist (when he played bass, Arnedo played keyboards) and drummer (when he played drums, Troglio did the percussion).


Success, popularity and demise

Sumo started to become a popular act in the mid-1980s as Luca's in-your-face style caught up deeply among teenagers, even if his music could also display a mellower streak. He would shout " fuck you" randomly or sing a scathing song about
dumb blonde Blonde stereotypes are stereotypes of blonde-haired people. Sub-types of this stereotype include the " blonde bombshell" and the "dumb blonde". Blondes are stereotyped as more desirable, but less intelligent than brunettes. There are many blo ...
s, and immediately swoon about his appreciation for common, working class men drinking '' ginebra'' at a
bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...
. In Sumo's later releases some
Spanish language Spanish ( or , Castilian) is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from colloquial Latin spoken on the Iberian peninsula. Today, it is a world language, global language with more than 500 millio ...
lyrics were added to the band's repertoire. Many of Luca's lyrics featured irony, wordplay and references to
drugs A drug is any chemical substance that causes a change in an organism's physiology or psychology when consumed. Drugs are typically distinguished from food and substances that provide nutritional support. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalat ...
, dance parties,
sex Sex is the trait that determines whether a sexually reproducing animal or plant produces male or female gametes. Male plants and animals produce smaller mobile gametes (spermatozoa, sperm, pollen), while females produce larger ones ( ova, of ...
and other aspects of young people's lives, while remaining aloof of the political and economic changes in the Argentina of the 80s. The band's history was linked to entrepreneur Omar Chabán, who was the owner of Café Einstein and celebrated Buenos Aires alternative nightclub ''Cemento''—where Sumo played many times. Due to his drinking habit and vertiginous rock-and-roll lifestyle, Prodan's health deteriorated. He died of a heart attack on 22 December 1987—two days after their last show. After Luca's passing the band dissolved but its legacy was carried on by two bands,
Divididos Divididos ("Divided") is an Argentine rock band.El Polaco Goyeneche fue el prim ...
(led by Mollo and Arnedo) and
Las Pelotas Las Pelotas (in English: ''The Balls'', or more idiomatically, ''Bollocks!'', since the band name is a play of words between those two meanings); is an Argentine rock and reggae band from Córdoba. This band was formed after the separation of Sum ...
(Sokol and Daffunchio's project). Some of Sumo's outtakes and their seminal recording ''Corpiños en la madrugada --'' originally sold in cassette format only—were released commercially. Two solo cuts by Prodan recorded between 1981 and 1983 were also released posthumously, "Time, Fate, Love" and "Beautiful Losers". Tributes to Sumo include a 1995 double album fittingly titled "Fuck You"—with famous Argentine musicians' covers of Sumo tracks. On 12 April 2007 surviving original band members Alejandro Sokol (vocals), Ricardo Mollo (guitar), Germán Daffunchio (guitar), Diego Arnedo (bass), Alberto ''Superman'' Troglio (drums), Roberto Pettinato (sax) and Marcelo Rodríguez "Gillespi" as guest trumpetist reunited and played three songs -- ''Crua Chan'', ''Divididos por la Felicidad'' and ''DeBeDe''—during ''Quilmes Rock Festival'' at
River Plate Stadium Estadio Monumental (), officially Estadio Mâs Monumental for sponsorship reasons,Noticia sobre la muerte de Alejandro Sokol
Retrieved January 28, 2017


Band members


1981-1982

*
Luca Prodan Luca Prodan (17 May 1953 – 22 December 1987) was an Italian-Argentinian musician and singer who rose to fame as the leading vocalist of Sumo, one of the most influential rock bands of Argentina,''Argentina Independent''Lo de Luca: Homage to a R ...
(
vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...
,
acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...
and
bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...
) * Alejandro Sokol (bass guitar, vocals) * Germán Daffunchio (
guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...
) * Ricardo Curtet (guitar) * Stephanie Nutall (
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
)


1982-1984

*
Luca Prodan Luca Prodan (17 May 1953 – 22 December 1987) was an Italian-Argentinian musician and singer who rose to fame as the leading vocalist of Sumo, one of the most influential rock bands of Argentina,''Argentina Independent''Lo de Luca: Homage to a R ...
(vocals, guitar) * Alejandro Sokol (drums) * Germán Daffunchio (guitar) * Diego Arnedo (bass guitar) * Roberto Pettinato (
saxophone The saxophone (often referred to colloquially as the sax) is a type of single-reed woodwind instrument with a conical body, usually made of brass. As with all single-reed instruments, sound is produced when a reed on a mouthpiece vibrates to pr ...
)


1984-1987

*
Luca Prodan Luca Prodan (17 May 1953 – 22 December 1987) was an Italian-Argentinian musician and singer who rose to fame as the leading vocalist of Sumo, one of the most influential rock bands of Argentina,''Argentina Independent''Lo de Luca: Homage to a R ...
(vocals) * Alberto ''Superman'' Troglio (drums and
percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Exc ...
) * Roberto Pettinato (saxophone) * Diego Arnedo (bass guitar and
keyboards Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...
) *
Ricardo Mollo Ricardo Mollo (born August 17, 1957) is an Argentine musician, producer, singer and composer of Argentinian rock. Career Mollo became known in the 1980s as the guitarist of Sumo, with whom he released four studio albums until 1987, when the voc ...
(guitar) * Germán Daffunchio (guitar) * Alejandro Sokol (vocals, bass guitar and drums)


Discography

* ''Corpiños en la madrugada'' (released as demo, 1983) * ''Divididos por la felicidad'' (1985) * ''Llegando los monos'' (1986) * ''After chabon'' (1987) * ''Fiebre'' (posthumous, 1989)


Compilations

* ''Greatest Hits'' (1988) * ''The Collection'' (1991) * ''Corpiños en la madrugada'' (remastered release, 1992) * ''Obras Cumbres'' (2000)


Notes and references


External links


Sumo biography
on Rock.com.ar (Spanish)

(Spanish)
Sumo reunited after 20 years
(Spanish) {{Authority control Musical groups established in 1981 Argentine post-punk music groups Argentine reggae musical groups Argentine alternative rock groups Argentine punk rock groups Musical groups disestablished in 1988 Reggae rock groups