Pappo halted his solo career "Pappo's Blues" in 1980 and started the band Riff with Michael Peyronel, Boff and Vitico. It was the first major heavy metal band in Argentina, taking New Wave of British Heavy Metal influences. They released their first LP "Ruedas de Metal" in 1981, followed by "Macadam 3... 2... 1... 0" and "Contenidos". Most concerts ended in violence, forcing the band to break up in 1983.
Riff returned in 1985, and by this time the local heavy metal scene was more populated. They released "Riff VII", with JAF singing alongside Pappo. The reunion was short-lived, JAF and Vitico started solo careers and Pappo moved to the United States. From that point on, the band stayed as a side-project of Pappo and Vitico, who reunited it several times to release some new album and make some concerts, and then return to their other projects.
Pappo died in 2005, but the band returned for some concerts in 2018.
For the musical concept, see Epic Riff.
Albums
- Ruedas de Metal (1981)
- Macadam 3...2...1...0 (1981)
- Contenidos (1982)
- En acción (1983)
- Riff VII (1985)
- Riff 'n Roll (1987)
- Zona de nadie (1992)
- Paladium '86 (1995)
- En vivo en Obras 17 / 12 / 1985 (1995)
- En vivo (1996)
- Que sea rock (1997)
- En vivo en Obras 20-10-2001 (2002)
Tropes
- After the End: Some songs like "Pantalla del Mundo Nuevo" and "La Frontera Inesperada" describe post-apocalyptic futures.
- Crazy-Prepared: "Ruedas de Metal" says that we, the kings of heavy metal, are always alert for any situation.
- The Dark Side: "Bienvenida a mi lado oscuro" sings about the dark side... which is not really evil, just dark.
- Early-Installment Weirdness: When it was first formed Riff had a singer, Juan Carlos García Haymes, but fans wanted to hear nothing of him. Be it rock, blues or heavy metal, Pappo's voice was part of his personal style, and there was no way the fandom would accept someone else other than Pappo singing in a band that has Pappo in the line-up.
- Heavy Meta: The song "Que sea Rock" and the album "Riff 'n Roll" both fit
- It Sucks to Be the Chosen One: "La Espada Sagrada" in the story of a baby that turned out to be The Chosen One, but one day he escaped to run away from all that.
- Minimalistic Cover Art: "Que sea Rock" is just a black album, with only the name of the band and the album's title.
- Rich in Dollars, Poor in Sense: "Sube a mi Voituré" talks about a woman that, against all sense, loves to take rides in Mercedes Benz cars.
- Surprisingly Gentle Song: "Elena X" is a power ballad more in line with JAF's later solo work than with most of the bands output
