Search - Translator :: Evening of the Harvest

A harvest of guitars

Tim Brough | Springfield, PA United States | 05/29/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The fourth and final album from Translator brought the big guitars in for a loud rocking finale. More than any of their other albums, "Evening Of The Harvest" piles on the hard rocking solos and distorted chording, but never straying far from the band's Beatles/psychedelia/new-wave roots. The songs are also again split between vocalists Robert Darlington and Steve Barton, and was probably their most exotic set of songs. In particular, Darlington's mystic "Is There a Heaven Singing" is almost otherworldly in its sound.



But if you're a fan of the band (I have been frustratedly waiting 20 years for this to arrive on CD), then you'll still recognize these songs as uniquely Translator. "Evening of The Harvest" was four years after the youthful barrage of "Heartbeats & Triggers" and was giving way to more mature songwriting; the final two songs here ("Tolling of The Bells" and the title track) are up there with the band's best.



It's a darn shame that Translator called it a day after this. This album showed that the band was growing and were more than ready to make stadium rock beyond the initial confines of their "new wave" origins. There is even a great cover of Jefferson Airplane's "Today" (as a bonus track) to indicate that they were becoming more attached to their San Fransisco roots. (This may be the least 'British' sounding Translator album.) Regardless of its position in the Translator discography, "Evening Of The Harvest" is a great CD from a vastly under-rated band. It may have taken 20 years for these albums to reach CD, but they are all worth hearing again."

A Harbinger of the 1990s and Their Best Album

Tony Sclafani | 02/09/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"On the very last night of my freshman year in my old college dorm, I had the realization that I'd never be seeing most of my dorm-mates again. So I impulsively went wild. Well, wild for me, anyway. I turned my Velvet Underground vinyl waaay up, actually drank a beer (not something I usually did) and instinctively went for a hallway hottie I'd been eyeing all year (surprisingly, I pulled this off).



A similar go-for-broke feeling permeates Translator's last album, "Evening of the Harvest." The band knew that in four years it hadn't built and audience or much record company support. By 1986, the new wave they rode in on had long since crested and guitar bands playing rock (as opposed to hardcore or classic punk) were only having moderate success, even R.E.M.



So they went for it. Guitars turned up to eleven, bizarre songs, Indian instruments, long, drawn-out jams, and lyrics that spoke of the proverbial strung out ones and worse. And they came up with not only their best album, but one of the best unsung LPs of the 1980s.



If the title of "Evening of the Harvest" seems to reference Neil Young, that's an appropriate place to begin to appreciate the record. Like Young, Translator has no qualms here bashing away at a manta-like three-chord rocker (the title track) till their energy seems dissipated. They also made the Neil-like move of making a hard left turn in their musical style, almost completely leaving behind the shimmering pop they made their name with.



Yet the results work on their own terms, even if critics back then didn't quite understand why a new wave band that had spiky hair now looked like they rose from the early 1970s - and sounded the part too. No one could have known it then, but "Evening of the Harvest" was a harbinger of two styles that would dominate the 1990s - grunge and jam band music.



Songs like "Stony Gates of Time," "These Old Days" and "I Need You to Love" find main Translator songwriter Steve Barton in reflective mode, but surrounded by sonic mayhem much of the time. Meanwhile, guitarist Bob Darlington, who usually chimed in with ballads, brought his hardest rocking material to the table to date in "Complications," "Tolling of the Bells" and "Standing in Line." "Winter Crying" boasts a long, long instrumental section and "Is There a Heaven Singing?" revives raga-rock. All are hummable and filled with hooks, yet the band hammers them home like they were channeling Crazy Horse circa 1971.



All of this probably bewildered what was left of Translator's audience - the shiny, happy kids who were drawn in by boppy numbers like "Everywhere That I'm Not" and "Un-Alone." But it sure holds up today. They never rocked harder. Unfortunately, they often sounded better. The biggest problem with this album is its unfortunate 1980s mix - David Sheff's drums are placed way too up-front (which was the style then) and the guitars could have a lot more presence. But the songs on "Evening of the Harvest" are so emotionally-charged, they work through a tinny transistor radio, so the sonic failures here aren't that traumatic.



The reissue adds an EP-only cover of the Jefferson Airplane's "Today" and Steve Barton's funniest - and most political - tune, "Ronnie Raygun Blues." Had Translator put the latter on the LP at the time, they might have managed to cause themselves enough controversy to stay afloat. Then again, they may have been shown the door by their record company. Such was the reality of being a rock band in the 1980s.

"

Finally!

Thomas Wolslegel | Springfield, MA United States | 01/05/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"A much neglected band that for me was the highlight of the 80's. Remember seeing them in a small club in New Haven, Ct. and feeling so fortunate. Have survived on my old mix tapes and a compilation cd for 20 years waiting for this and the other three albums to come out on cd. This particular album shows the band maturing and heading in interesting new directions with superb guitar chops. What has happened to Robert Darlington? One of the great voices and song writers to come from San Fransisco."