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UcSIIIUIlllcJ Ucalll By Michael Miller One of rock's most compelling bands, Translator, has been on the road since the release of its second album in late summer, and will perform Monday night at the Golden Spur in the Russell House. The four members of the band ? Steve Barton, guitar and vocals; Robert Darlington, guitar and vocals; Larry Dekker, bass; and David Scheff. drums ? met in Los Aneeles in 1979 and later moved to San Francisco in ,4a gesture of resistance to typecasting," according to Barton. Indeed, it would be unfair to typecast Translator's music. Although they have been compared to classic 1960s pop bands like the Byrds and the Beatles, Translator's layered guitars, tight vocal harmonies, and socially-conscious lyrics reveal an authentic style that draws from many influences. <?**.'!'I'll TuriD ?: ?c ? J ? ~i? TXAftl 1 1II.1AV I11IAIUK Ul UpClI ClllUllUU clliU llUIClC^d West Coast exotica, Translator seems like a fascinating mating of "Joy Division" and "Moby Grape," David Fricke wrote in Rolling Stone. The band's songs are idealistic statements on coping with the confusion, ugliness and loneliness that surround us in the modern world. The message is to seek love and life itself, and the political traumas will heal themselves. The disarmament anthem "Sleeping Snakes" not so subtly requests a stop to the missile building. Also on the album is a tribute to John Lennon, "Everywhere That I'm Not," and an almost traditional love song, "My Heart, Your Heart," from the band's first album, "Heartbeats and Triggers." The new album, "No Time Like Now," has received a warm response from many of rock's major critics. "The songs on 4No Time Like Now' push toward triumphant choruses crowned with good old folk-rock guitar licks," Jon Pareles wrote in The New York Times. J.D. CONSIDINE of Musician magazine said, "Translator may be the only rockers left who are capable of writing love songs that are neither cliches nor abstractions." "No Time Like Now" is a sensitive tableau of contemporary life that is of trembling hope, tempered by a faint apocalypse. Whether they are speaking of personal autonomy in "Un-Alone"or the meddling of two lives in "Break Down Barriers," Translator plaintively calls for an awareness that will hold back the dreary night. But that isn't to say they have eschewed musicality for incisive lyrics. "No Time Like Now," "Break Down Barriers," "Simple Things," and "Circumstance Laughing" bristle with danceable rhythms. And then there is "L.A., L.A.," a frantic paean 10 mat most mangnea megalopolis. Translator's live shows also bristle with a bracing balance of finesse and abandon. The tight quarters of the Golden Spur will do away with the distance that often comes between performers and their audience. The band's cohesiveness and their p??^ ^| ^HIk, ?5 \ I JP gff M ""%i^ 0"** "Here she comes" JoAnna Ewing, a Zeta Tau Alpha pledge, was crowned Miss Greek Tu Ballroom. The pageant was sponsored by Alpha Tau Omega, who celt USC Thursday. B M I a to rocKUoici F L I Translator Will perform Monday at the Spur. The California band includes (fron ability to put out a scorching set of intricate tunes without? rogance or gimmicks will be obvious. A smooth affinity exi: between them; the guitars complement each other and t miiiusi uuscsmvc liucipiiiy uciwecn ine Dass ana arums give: cli& to the drive behind this band. Translator's goal is to translate modern experience into intelligent but palatable medium that moves the spirit, as w as the soul. But despite all the philosophizing, Translator first and foremost a rock 'n' roll band. ntjwuuu By Maria Baens Brave souls weathered tl day night to see Ballet C Mexico perform at the C This is the third in the Series. Anyone expecting a pa have been disappointed. ! were cheered by the energe singing and dancing of t won first nlace in the Worl by his partner. The cloth i Photo by Shaun Koh floor and tied into a bow b; only their dexterous feet. esday night in the Russell House irated its 100th anniversary at "Oaxaca" or44Dance of tures the ancient custom c T f? I Ion Qniir nrniAirl lull Mpui UIUWMU 11, to r.) Larry Dekker, David Scheff, Robert Darlington and Steve Barton. it- "We're not bubble gum, and we're not an ivory-tower case sts pondering the great, crisis of mankind," Darlington says."To he my ears, we play as loud and as hard as any band in the 5 a world." Three hundred tickets will be sold at the door for Monday's ^ an Translator performance. The doors will open at 8 p.m., and * ell the show.starts at 9 p.m. If you want the chance to hear some is of the most exciting, innovative music being made today, come to the Spur early and stake your place in line. Mexico winning dance troupe in USC performance eggs on the shores of the isthmus. The le drizzle Wednes- dancers, garbed in green and donning huge Iran Folklorico de fan-like headdresses of rainbow colors, arolina Coliseum. dance to pipe music. Carolina Concert The "Jarabe Tapatio" or "Mexican Hat Dance" was quickly recognized and warmly ix de deux would applauded. It is performed to the music of Still, more people the famous mariachi bands. tic foot-stomping, he ensemble that "DANZA DEL Venado," or "Dance of d Folklore Festival the Deer," is a sensitive rendition of a sphere was warm spirited deer desperately trying to flee the "paseolas" (hunters). The male lead dancer r h h Th bucks, prances and convulses to effectively Cf r> e? evoke the sufferings of the animal. The rattly is r ega, j "sonajas" elevate the suspense of this r dances evolved danc(. as [hc hu wj h ,hejr arro i.slory. Estampa eme vic.torious. e) taken north of uahua and Nuevo- . . . . , , f , c . , I he music was mostly provided by a seven100 OI t nC o 13Qn 1Srl I i I ? *1* man band equipped with sonorous violines, pluck guitars and blaring trumpets. The JZANAS" is a trtoupe also includes a female vocalist of imthe feasts of Passive range and a Mexican "cowboy" hatching the agUc who lassoi^ scem as ^ as "rin8: . . & . around-the-roses. ly gives a substanve people. The costumes, bright shades of orange, o yellow, green and blue, vividly contrasted famous La Bamba from me\ . vu uuvnuiu);. lilt IC11KUC lltlllLCI.I 3f cloth wrapped enticed the audience by whirling their billowwaist is unwound ing skirts, creating swirling circles of color on s then laid on the stage. /the couple, using The ensemble brought much delight to its South Carolina audience. The only things lacking were the bright city lights and hot the Turtles" cap- chili con came. It must have been surprising >f collecting turtle to some to walk back into the drizzle.