[ Music Index | Silicon Valley | Metroactive Home | Archives ]

The Ataris Sunday, Nov. 2. Leavey Center, Santa Clara University, 500 El Camino Real, Santa Clara, 408.554.KSCU, 6PM. $12 Any alternative or modern-rock act that makes its first big splash with a cover of a popular song is bound to raise the eyebrows of the credibility police. When the Ataris broke through to a wider audience with a version of the sepia-toned Don Henley '80s classic "The Boys of Summer," some quickly predicted that the previously below-the-radar band would quickly fade to "one-cover-wonder" status. But the Santa Barbara-bred quartet actually had three albums and an EP under its belt before it released its major-label debut, So Long, Astoria (Columbia), this past spring. Considered pop-punk by some and hinting-at-emo by others, the Ataris manifest quite a bit of John Hughes-type youth angst on Astoria. "Boys" is wisely buried 10 tracks deep into the album, and before that there's examples of old school college rock ("Takeoffs and Landings," power pop ("Summer '79") and MOR modern crunch-festing ("The Hero Dies in This One"). The songs are typically on the rapid side, but there's a notable sense of melody underpinning most tracks on Astoria. (Yoshi Kato) Send a letter to the editor about this story to letters@metronews.com. Winter Music Guide 2003 The Fingerbangerz The Faction David Bowie The Matches Jucifer The Ataris Hieroglyphics Primus Evanescence The Brian Setzer Orchestra Good Charlotte Hot Water Music Mya The Polyphonic Spree Ticketmaster's new bid-for-tickets system Winter music listings [ Silicon Valley | Metroactive Home | Archives ]