The group created a sound that spanned updated British Merseybeat and stripped-down punk-like rock to psychedelia.
The four-piece band was formed in Los Angeles in 1979 when singer/songwriter/guitarist Steve Barton linked up with Larry Dekker on bass and Dave Scheff on drums.
Translator then relocated to San Francisco where they were signed to Howie Klein's independent label, 415 Records, on the strength of the demo tape they sent to college radio station KUSF: the loose and rambling yet laconic "Everywhere That I'm Not" has remained the band's signature tune.
[2][3] In March 2015, Omnivore Recordings released a 22-song compilation of Translator's studio demos, spanning 1979–1985, titled Sometimes People Forget.
The well-received album sparked a tour by the band, which included San Francisco, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Portland, and Seattle.
In 2016, the band released four new recordings (three brand new songs, and a live cover of John Lennon's "Remember" from a 1982 show).
Dave Scheff has continued drumming, most recently with the orchestra at Teatro ZinZanni, on a 2008 summer UK tour with Dead Kennedys, and (together with Larry Dekker, guitarist Peter Wiley and keyboardist and singer Cynthia Haagens) in Bang Bang Men, and San Francisco soul-pop group Half True.