They have "it" - is there really ANY doubt about that?

I also think the only thing upsetting one "side" of this argument is the heavy(-sh) beat.

After all, in many ways, it's very Jazz. Think of the loop as the rest of the band Vamping, while the Vocalist does his thing and the Saxophonist solos occasionally.

I love the groove these guys have and the way they let the effects "breathe" throughout the whole song - they have a real feel for that.

I remember recently my wife and I were relaxing on a rare day off in a Beer Garden, and there was a Keyboard player there who used a looper as his backing track - he played "finger drums" on a mini porch board, looped it, vocalised a bass line, looped THAT, and off he went - great stuff.