To go to a good restaurant and get a good meal is the equivalent of the favorite winning a horse race. To go to a hyped place and then get a bad meal is when the horse you've backed falls at the first fence.

But when you go to a new restaurant and have your initial misgivings wiped out by a spectacular meal, that's when your heavily backed 50-1 outsider wins the big race.

We had heard nothing about Pacific East - which opened recently in Amagansett on the spot where, in the misty past, stood the famous Mar tell's - and didn't know that the owners, Alex Duff and Michael Castino (who is also the chef), were members of the team that started South Beach's famous Pacific Time in Florida.

Pain And Dismay

The building has always been a big barnlike place, and the clean, simple decor gives no idea of what kind of food to expect, though we knew it was Pacific Rim.

Our first reaction was a cry of pain as we saw that a number of entrees were over $30, the second was a snort of horror as we saw there was no bread, only seed-encrusted crackers that were cold and had lost their crispness in Sunday's humidity, and the third was a groan of dismay to see that, pandering to yuppie pretension, there was a cigar room.

So we fenced and quibbled and finally arranged our order as economically as possible.

Works Of Art

But as we sat waiting, obviously prejudiced and unenthused, the first course arrived in a flurry of waiters and our hearts were won - Pacific East gets an A-plus for presentation.

Pale celadon spears of fresh hearts of palm (yes, fresh - the restaurant cooks entirely from raw ingredients) were arranged in a square construction on a dark blue glass plate, the center of the square being filled with carrot miso vinaigrette. Around the edge of the plates were slivers of green scallion.

Amagansett miso clam chowder with New Zealand cockles and baby vegetables was a huge helping in a white bowl starred with blue. The iced tuna tartare with fresh coconut juice and Japanese horseradish was served in half a coconut shell over ice, with homemade potato chips arranged like a Cezanne still life on a blue plate.

Spirits Soared!

Shredded roast duck arrived wrapped in little ginger scallion crepes and served with a sweet and sour sauce of plums and huckleberries. Once again the delicate sliced garnish was a work of art.

The final appetizer, which just nosed out the tuna as favorite, was a divine Indochine beef salad, charred to perfection in a wok, and served over what they call hearty greens with satay flavors and fresh basil.

Everything was delicious. Everything was beautiful. Everything was subtle, sophisticated, and light.

How the mood of the evening had changed! How the wine, and laughter, and conversation were now flowing!

Pretty And Prettier

The entrees, also, arrived in a simultaneous flourish - one almost expected a trumpet fanfare. Each plate complemented the colors of the entree that was served upon it and vegetables were never duplicated.

Organic roast chicken over gingered spinach mash with pan juices. Does that sound dull? On a marbled green plate, the chicken reclined in a wine-dark sauce, buttressed by mounds of green potatoes surmounted by long spears of scallion - there scarcely exists prose purple enough to do it justice. And it tasted better than it looked.

One of us ordered an appetizer as a second course which won the vote for prettiest dish of the evening: five little rolls of smoked salmon wrapped around sprouts with wasabi and creme fraiche and topped with red beads of roe. As with all the dishes, texture was emphasized.

One Disappointment

Then there was an inexpensive dish of noodles with Peking duck served with crisp vegetables. It was served in a warm pepper duck reduction which, while it was almost too subtle to be appreciated, was considered a sign of great care and attention to detail.

The wonton tofu ravioli with ribbon vegetables in a ginger garlic miso broth were as light as a feather and excitingly hot and spicy.

The only disappointment was the portobello shabu shabu, which was bland and undersalted and served over sad, overcooked soba noodles. The lemon grass broth was delicate but the dish was not enjoyed. However, since the menu changes every night (Pacific East commendably has no "specials"), there will obviously be a lot of sorting out of what works and what doesn't as the weeks go by.

Snowy Hedgehog

We only tried two desserts, a warm chocolate bombe and a key lime sorbet baked-Alaska sort of thing. The waiter sliced open the little chocolate mound, which was served with homemade ice cream, and the molten chocolate center seeped out. The fragrant sorbet arrived in its warm coating of soft meringue like a little snow-covered hedgehog.

Those diners who had said, "Nothing for me, thanks. I never eat desserts," suddenly changed their minds. Both desserts were perfect.

The wine list incorporates a moderate but imaginative selection of wines from fairly inexpensive to fairly expensive. There is a big range of wines by the glass which include an Alsacian white, a SagPonds rose, and French and Californian reds. We chose a 1994, if I remember rightly, Palmer Vineyards cabernet sauvignon which was not expensive and was lovely.

Order Craftily

Apart from the one dish that was not good, there were a couple of other quibbles. There really should be bread, even if it's not a big item out there on the Pacific Rim - a customer feels loved when that basket of fresh, interesting rolls arrives and, besides, how else can we get that last bit of fabulous sauce?

The blending of the ingredients was not always perfect, so that occasionally one jumped out too much, like the garlic in the noodles or the chili in the bean dip. But they were small quibbles - this is a serious chef we have here.

Pacific East has prices about as high as they go on the East End - the Szechuan Maine lobster is $32, the organic rack of lamb and prime Angus sirloin are $30 - but it also gives you a lot of leeway to construct a less expensive meal.

For example, the appetizers, priced at $8 to $12, are generous and extremely good value for what you get. One less hungry diner ordered two appetizers and found she had had enough to eat for $20. And while there were seven entrees $25 or over, there were seven which are $25 or under, including the thin noodles with Peking Duck, which are only $13.

We were extremely surprised to find that with careful ordering, we ended up having had a spectacular meal for less than we had paid recently in Montauk at a less expensive restaurant.

The East Hampton Village Zoning Board of Appeals, motivated by good intentions, is heading down the road to hell. Zoning is big business here, whether we like it or not. In the past decade or so an influx of wealthy people willing to spend whatever it takes to get what they want has changed the game, if not the rules.

In their efforts to bend the Village Code to their will, these property owners have introduced batteries of high-priced lawyers and "environmental consultants" to a meeting room lined with trophy cases and photographs of firefighters. All too often they have turned what used to be sedate give-and-takes into adversarial proceedings.

Sometimes these applicants are contending against the natural environment, which government is supposed to protect. More often, however, the board has to rule on the conflicting desires of neighbors.

It is the responsibility of the appointed members of appeals boards to consider whether variances from the laws are necessary and to weigh what the negative impacts may be if exceptions are granted. Village Z.B.A. members, however, with the exception of Joan Denny, seem ill-equipped to handle the charge.

Unlike the Town Zoning Board of Appeals, whose members spell out their reasoning as they cast their votes, Village Z.B.A. members appear to shoot from the hip - or vote from the gut - and then figure out how to justify what they have done.

Time and time again, they have been unable to articulate the step-by-step logic behind their thinking. For years, their attorney, Johanna Caleca, who recently left the job, had to walk members through the decision-making process to insure that the record showed it was based on reasoned consideration. This is inadequate at best and a recipe for legal disaster at worst.

During the early forays in the much-publicized dispute between Martha Stewart and Harry Macklowe, for example, with a court reporter hired for the occasion transcribing every word, a Z.B.A. member interrupted Mr. Macklowe's lawyer to demand that he "get to the point. What's your point?"

"I'm trying to build a record," said the surprised attorney. Not long afterward, he was told to "wrap it up, I need to take my wife to the hairdresser."

The board's decision eventually went against Mr. Macklowe, though it took a while before the members found a relevant chapter in the code to back it up. Mr. Macklowe has since sued. And these litigious goings-on are beginning to add up.

Z.B.A. members have a thankless job. They deserve credit for the many hours they devote to the community's welfare. No matter what they do, someone is going to be unhappy.

Five years ago, the Village Z.B.A. had a major decision on its hands: Should Alice Lawrence's tall wall on Highway Behind the Pond be considered a fence, in which case it would have been too high, or part of the house's design? The 1992 board handled the case skillfully, listening to elaborate presentations and rendering a solid, grounded decision. The key was a strong chairman, Irving Markowitz, who has since retired. Mr. Markowitz was diplomatic, articulate, and sharp on the issues. The Z.B.A. has not been the same since. East Hampton no longer is "Our Town." It is time for a more professional board and for stronger leadership.

A University of Maryland professor who calls himself "Dr. Beach" has released his annual rankings of the nation's top 20 beaches, and once again Main Beach in East Hampton is among the stars of the strands.

Mind you, it ranks no higher than 15th. But that's okay - the first 13 are all either in Hawaii, on islands that developers have never heard of, or in Florida, on outlying keys or part of state park preserves. Number 14 is in North Carolina, but again on an island - Ocracoke, well off the coast and almost inaccessible.

What is remarkable about Main Beach's standing (and that of its near neighbor, Dune Road beach in Westhampton, rated 16th) is that they are world-class beaches not because of their location but despite it. In spite of the fact that the Hamptons are accessible to some 10 million people in the tristate area, its most popular beaches remain pristine.

The Maryland professor is Stephen Leatherman, a coastal engineer who has seen our beaches at first-hand.

"The beaches are open for sunbathers, but they don't allow off-road vehicles to rampage up and down," he explained. "There are designated areas for fishermen. There are good hotels and restaurants nearby, but they're not right on the beach."

Nature's gifts - the broad sands, the size of the waves, the temperature of the water - are part of the criteria, of course, but only a part. It is our stewardship that matters most.

Peter Beard is on a roll. The Montauk artist was in Arles, France, this week installing selections of his work at the Nord-Penus Hotel. Meanwhile, his explosive mix of penned diary entries, photography, and collage is the focus of a summerlong retrospective at the Time Is Always Now gallery on Spring Street in New York City.

On Sunday, speaking from France, he said that despite a relative lack of fanfare, the New York show is better than the one that took Paris by storm in January.

That show, "Carnets Africans," at the Centre National de la Photographie, was his first retrospective. It presented four decade' worth of "mosaics" that reveal Mr. Beard's singular and unsettling vision of an overpopulated world run amok.

Much of the same work is on display now in New York. It includes pieces created by the artist in the wake of his near-fatal trampling by an elephant in the Maasai Mara Preserve on the border of Tanzania last September.

Ironic Predicament

The run-in was not without irony. Mr. Beard's pelvis was crushed, and he found himself slumped on an African anthill with massive internal bleeding at the feet of the animal whose plight he has spent 40 years documenting.

His book "End of the Game," published in 1965, first told the story with haunting photos of starving elephants and skeletons of culled elephants in Kenya's Tsavo Preserve. The plot is simple: Human society crowds out wildlife, resources, and each other.

"She got me up against the anthill. I was a human, and that's what it's all about. We're microscopically small, and doing everything wrong. It was perfect to end up there," he said in January as he prepared for the Paris show only three months after the incident.

Collector's Collage

Mr. Beard's mosaics are a feast. He is an indefatigable collector - of cobblestones from the beach in front of his house in the Montauk moorlands, of bones from around his Hog Ranch complex outside Nairobi, Kenya, of newspaper headlines, snakeskins, feathers.

If the finds are small enough, they are glued into the diary pages he began writing in the 1960s when Jackie Onassis gave him a leather-bound journal as a gift. He was keeping company with her sister, Lee Radziwill, at the time.

On the pages, on and around the collectibles and the glued photos he's taken over the years (his "dictionary of images"), he continues his written commentary on world events, in ink and blood.

The framed pieces he likes to call mosaics come in all sizes. They often include photographs of his frenetic diary intermixed with striking black-and-white images of Africa.

Time For Cunning

Typical of the Beard style and "End of the Game" theme is the mosaic he created after the elephant attack which served as the centerpiece of the Paris show. The 6-by-4-foot piece is atypically autobiographical, however - testimony to the impact the trampling has had on the artist. The piece is a wild, apocalyptic compilation of individual days.

Two magnetic resonance imaging photos that show Mr. Beard's spine and brain appear in the center. Between them is glued a plastic intravenous bag and tubing labeled "morphine." There are grisly photos of him in surgery, but then mellow pictures of his Montauk house and loving photos of his daughter, Zara.

"I had a few flashes of Zara, and I thought I'd better do something really cunning if I was going to see her again," he said, recalling his unsuccessful 100-yard dash to outrun the matriarch of the elephant herd.

Devil-May-Care Attitude

The cunning move was to hold onto the elephant's left front leg to avoid being crushed again. A tusk had gone through his thigh, narrowly missing the femoral artery.

To those who know him, Mr. Beard's dire outlook and unrelenting approach to his work have always appeared in surprising contrast to the devil-may-care attitude he projects. He has been perceived, with some justification, as a blue-blooded playboy - a friend of Mick Jagger and Andy Warhol, running with a fast crowd and often setting the pace.

He was married to Cheryl Tiegs, and before that to a Newport socialite, Minnie Cushing. News stories following the trampling had predictable angles, viewing it as a comeuppance, hubris and the fall.

It was, of course, not that simple. The fall, given Mr. Beard's relationship with elephants and their sad story, was an object lesson, a prediction fulfilled upon the man who made it. He believes that much of the world's turmoil emanates from a claustrophobic reaction - like the elephant's - to overpopulation and human meddling. That nature will exact a terrible vengeance on human arrogance Mr. Beard has no doubt.

In this regard images of the O.J. Simpson trial provided as much grist for Mr. Beard as the dead and dying elephants of Tsavo. In other words, Mr. Beard's work is not without humor, black though it may be.

"The Hotel Nord-Penus is where Hemingway stayed, and Picasso, and Jean Cocteau," he said on Sunday from Arles. "Bullfighters always stayed in Room 10 the night before a fight." It is also the hotel that displayed Mr. Beard's work in 1984.

Discomfort With "Art"

"This is a Roman town. The Emperor Tertullian visited Arles," he said, going on to recite, with little hesitation, the emperor's words decrying the state of the world in 337 A.D.:

"Our teeming population is the strongest evidence: Our numbers are burdensome to the world, which can hardly supply us from its natural elements; our wants grow more and more keen, and our complaints more bitter in the mouth, whilst nature fails in affording us her usual sustenance. In every deed, pestilence, and famine, and wars, and earthquakes have to be regarded as a remedy for nations, and the means of pruning the luxuriance of the human race."

Despite the social stratum in which he moves, money has never been a preoccupation. More has gone out than comes in. Nor has he spent much time on self-promotion, a modicum of which would have generated substantial revenues before now.

Transformation

Perhaps it's because he has always been uncomfortable with "art" and seems to have no interest in defining what he does. Ask him the title of a particular piece and the look you get is the closest thing to contempt he can muster.

Najma, a kindly and exotic woman from a prominent Nairobi family whom Mr. Beard married in 1986, speaks of a post-trampling transformation. She was able to get through to her husband from New York soon after his initial surgery. She said "a hard shell" was broken by the elephant and that his work seems to have taken on a new importance. "I think it's his moment," she said.

Judging from the prices being paid for his mosaics, the moment will be lucrative. On Sunday he gleefully relived the bidding for a work sold at a benefit auction in Cannes, during the recent film festival.

"Demi Moore made the first bid at $10,000, then Sean Penn bid. Johnny Depp bid $20,000. A Saudi prince got it for $35,000," he said with a laugh. Larger pieces at the Time Is Always Now gallery are priced in the $60,000 to $100,000 range.

Mr. Beard plans to return home to Montauk by the end of the month, after the opening of his show at the Michael Hoppin gallery in London.

Grim reality caught up with the rumors this week. All of a sudden, whatever weather-related event it was that precipitated a crisis over the winter in Costa Rica and Colombia and other South American coffee-growing countries showed up on local shelves.

Everyone knew it was coming, but no one was ready. Overnight, the price of an ordinary, no-frills can of coffee - forget French Roast and Hazelnut - jumped about a dollar. A pound of coffee that used to cost $4 is $5 now. Did we say a pound? Oops. Make that 12 ounces.

So far, the leap in the by-the-can price has not been matched over the counter. A cuppa joe still costs $1, though there are signs that may not last.

Not that any of it matters. Slaves to our morning habit, we will close our eyes to the cost, open our wallets, and stir, sip, and slurp. Aaahh.

As far as season finales go, Labor Day weekend is shaping up to be a whopper at Amagansett's Stephen Talkhouse. The lineup covers the spectrum, running from jazz to Delta blues. The legendary Latin-jazz percussionist Tito Puente starts it all off with two shows tonight at 8 and 10.

Tomorrow's early show by the trumpeter Chuck Mangione couldn't be anything but magical. A huge, haunting trumpet sound like Mr. Mangione's in a dark, cozy venue like the Talkhouse has the makings of a killer concert. He starts at 8. The gears will shift into overdrive at 11, when The Bogmen power out their manic, addictive alternative rock.

The Bogmen will stick around for the early show Saturday at 8, followed by The John Paris Band. The weekend pushes on into Sunday, with the entrancing Delta bluesman John Hammond at 8. Cadillac Moon will churn out "Tequila Sheila," "Goin' to Oyster Bay," and its other party favorites, afterward at 11.

The Talkhouse's weekday schedule slims down after that, but you can count on the popular acoustic Mondays to remain where they are.

M-80

Yo, Hollis, Queens, your homeboys Run-D.M.C. will be on stage Sunday night at M-80 in Southampton. The North Sea Road nightclub has decided to top off its end-of-summer rap series with hip-hop's most dynamic duo, the ones who brought us such classics as "Sucka M.C.s" and "You Be Illin'." The doors open at 9 p.m.

It should be a big weekend all around at M-80. Saturday night brings the on-the-rise young fashion designer Anand Jon for "Climax," a fashion show and party to complement what should be one of the club's biggest Saturdays of the summer. The event, hosted by Chris Hulbert, Rocco Ancarola, and Seth Greenberg, will feature a bevy of models wearing Anand Jon fashions, among other attractions.

Tomorrow night brings the club's normal Friday night dance party, hosted by Joey Morrissey. Tonight brings M-80's employee night as usual.

Jet East

Chalk Donald Trump onto the list of luminaries who have loitered on the couches at Jet East this summer. Joining the mega-mogul in the V.I.P. room Saturday night was none other than the Don's daughter, Ivanka. Being that she's still but a teen, one hopes she was drinking ginger ale.

The Jet has no special events lined up for this weekend aside from its ordinary dance parties.

Sound Factory

The dance-oriented Sound Factory in Southampton has all its DJs in a row and ready for Labor Day weekend, and the promoters are working to fill the cavernous club for three nights. Since the language of DJs is all foreign to me, I will relay this info. You translate: Friday will feature DJ Danny Teglia as well as DJ Razor and Johnny Vicious, who hosts HOT-97's "All Night Dance Party."

Saturday brings back the "Big Saturday" party, hosted by Michael Marcus, Joey Morrissey, and others, and Sunday brings back DJ Danny Teglia for a "Deep Into the Night" party lasting till noon.

The Sound Factory is on Montauk Highway, next to Pier One Imports.

Hansom House

The odd but appealing Hansom House on Elm Street, Southampton, has spent the summer dealing in blues and reggae - blues acts one weekend and reggae acts on alternate weekends - so for the season finale, the club has decided to combine the best of both worlds.

The super-feisty Shockshine will lead off tomorrow night, with its tight, original reggae at 10:30. The bluesman Bo Diddley Jr., whom the Hansom House has been beaming about all summer, will take over Saturday and Sunday, also at 10:30.

75 Main

Four nights of live music are on the menu at Southampton's 75 Main this week, all starting with Walter Finley's mellow rock tonight at 10:30 p.m. Chris Barret takes his normal spot at the piano tomorrow from 9 to 1 p.m. Reggae is the word for the next two nights, with Ramage playing Saturday at 11 and Tribal Legacy pumping it out Sunday at the same time.

Publick House

The Lone Sharks will make a rare trip to Southampton tomorrow night to play at the Southampton Publick House on Main Street and Bowden Square. The super-tight rockabilly group starts at 10 p.m. Saturday and Sunday nights are handled by the brewpub's rotation of DJs.

The real surprise at the Publick House, though, has been Monday nights with Sweet Belly Kisses, a young band that plays everything from Tony Bennett to Pearl Jam and has been drawing a weekend-sized crowd for the better part of the summer.

Buckley's Irish Pub

The always-lively local crowd at Buckley's Irish Pub in Southampton will be grooving to the band Planet Groove Saturday night from 11 on. The band pulls from a deep repertory of classic and modern rock and other styles, all danceable and upbeat. The one-man musical unit Amo plays his own treasure trove of classics Sunday night at 10.

Buckley's is on Job's Lane.

Chili Peppers

For those who haven't yet spent an afternoon in the sun with the funky Hotheads, Chili Peppers in Sag Harbor provides two more chances. No excuses. With their interplaying hip-hop and reggae vocals floating over a funk backbeat, The Hotheads make it hard to avoid the dance floor.

Latin dance music drives Chili Peppers' disco lights every Friday night after 10, and the beat changes over to disco on Saturdays.

Harbor House

The Harbor House in Sag Harbor should certainly be proud of its inaugural season. The popular music establishment gave the Harbor a big nightlife boost that should linger well through the off-season. One thing that won't is the club's employee night, which headed off into the sunset on Tuesday.

The Harbor House will head into Labor Day with guns ablaze, starting tonight with a double bill featuring the revved-up lounge music of Soul Curry starting at 10:30, followed by the Poughkeepsie-based band Osiva. The group's style has been described as "high-octane, psychoactive hip-hop." Sunday will feature more than the usual live reggae, when Shockshine joins Dollaman and Jamalski for a Labor Day minifest, beginning at 10:30.

The Harbor House is on Bridge Street.

Bulls Head Bar And Grill

Some blues with your rib-eye steak? The Bulls Head Bar and Grill on Main Street, Bridgehampton, is serving up Jim Turner Wednesday and next Thursday night around 9 p.m. Mr. Turner will also appear at the Parrish Art Museum in South ampton on Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m., for those hard-core Turner fans.

Riffz

The jukebox, pool tables, late-night kitchen and the rest of the amenities at Riffz on Montauk Highway, East Hampton, should be on full tilt this weekend. Live music is also on the itinerary, with the acoustic rocker Bruce Stuart tomorrow at 10 and The Fugitives playing rock-and-roll old and new Sunday night at the same time. As always, the coin slot is turned off on the jukebox on Saturday, so anyone can be a DJ for free.

Maidstone Arms

Kevin Ronan still fills the Water Room at East Hampton's Maidstone Arms with classical guitar and vocals. He appears on Saturday and Sunday this weekend at 7:30 p.m. both nights.

The Maidstone Arms is on Main Street across from Town Pond.

Dancing Crab

An open bar from 10 p.m. till 2 a.m.? Sounds good on the wallet, huh? Well, that's the hook Friday and Saturday nights at Montauk's Dancing Crab. A relatively small cover charge, and you're on your way.

The Morris Brothers play their classic rock tomorrow night at 10:30, leaving Saturday open for the DJ-driven "Club Crab" party. Sunday is still reserved for the Crab's employee night. Monday-night football, that somber signal that the season has faded, will be the feature every Monday at the club, with an open bar deal and free franks.

The Crab is on West Lake Drive.

Memory Motel

Live rock and blues acts continue to be the norm at Montauk's Memory Motel. Tomorrow night brings one of the bar's regulars, The O.K. Club, at 10:30, and Saturday and Sunday will feature Hard Copy. Don't forget, the Memory hauls out the karaoke machine every Wednesday night.

The Memory is on Main Street.

Dunes and Tide

Speaking of karaoke, it occurs at Montauk's Dunes and Tide on South Edison Street tonight and every Thursday at 10. DJs take over tomorrow and Saturday, with the Dunes' "Fever Friday" party tomorrow and the club's "Gilligan's Island" party on Saturday, both starting at 10.

Reggae from the band Impulse will change the beat Sunday night at 9 p.m.

Gurney's Inn

You can bet Gurney's Inn in Montauk will be full of guests for the big weekend, which means they'll need to be entertained. The Paul Gene Band is apparently happy to oblige. The veteran classic-rock keyboardist and his band are booked every day through Sunday. Every day, that is, except Thursday, so as not to usurp Gurney's popular karaoke night.

Music starts after 8 p.m. at Gurney's, which is on Old Montauk Highway.

New wave and its darker sibling, post-punk, weren't exactly the most enduring musical genres, which explains the ho-hum response to some recent comeback attempts (see Duran Duran and Depeche Mode). Regardless, the post-punk legends Echo and the Bunnymen are reunited, touring, and set to release their first new material as a full unit in 10 years.

The Bunnymen's performance at Guild Hall Friday night proved what the band's cult-like following already knew: that Echo and the Bunnymen were not just a pop gimmick - all mascara and no meat - but a solid artistic force.

A reviewer in their native England once credited them and their contemporaries, Joy Division, with setting off "a whole generation of doomy youth sporting raincoats, big hair, and carefully cultivated angst."

Star Material

There were no raincoats at Guild Hall's John Drew Theater on Friday night, but the near-capacity crowd seemed dedicated and expectant. One half of the room stood up for the entire two-hour show.

A truly retrospective set, the show opened with the band's first big single from 1980, "Rescue," and closed 15 numbers later with its second hit single, "Do It Clean." The band went light on its new material, even though a new album, "Evergreen," is set to be released next month. Instead, members treated the audience to a spirited reintroduction to the band, running through dark classics like "All That Jazz," "Killing Moon," and its most recognizable and recent hit, "Lips Like Sugar."

The group's lead singer, Ian McCulloch, was pure pop-star material throughout, proving why the band never quite succeeded without his sex-symbol charisma. Wearing white jeans and white denim jacket and sporting hair that looked like a severe case of bed-head, Mr. McCulloch played the part.

Three Moves

At first, his calculated indifference seemed unfair to the crowd, who obviously adored him. His persona appeared to stem more from boredom than angst, and he seemed more concerned about his drink on the floor and getting lit cigarettes from his backstage crew than putting on a stage show.

Mr. McCulloch had three moves throughout the show: standing with a hand on the microphone with a bent knee; turning to the drummer and nodding his head between verses, and crouching down to take a drink from his cup.

Somehow, though, his Jim Morrison-style of standing and crooning seemed to give him more and more charisma as the show rolled on. The band even saluted Jim Morrison with its version of "People Are Strange" - a dead-on version, without much added personality.

Adoring Fans

"I can't believe how adorable he is!" a girl behind me cried to her friend during a rousing version of "Killing Moon." Before the show, a woman in a white stretch limo pleaded with the Guild Hall staff to send out Mr. McCulloch, blocking traffic in the process for about a half-hour.

Other than Mr. McCulloch, the band was not much to look at. With minimal lighting effects and other diversions, one was drawn into the vocals and the psychedelic, echo-laced guitar work of Will Sergeant. Musically, the band had few traces of the happy synthesizer-driven pop that characterized much of the new wave era. These songs were soaring, powerful vehicles for Mr. McCulloch's high-pitched crooning.

Mr. Sergeant's guitar intertwined with the synth to create full-bodied chords, and Les Pattinson's steady, rolling bass was complemented by flawless drums by Michael Lee (Mr. Lee was recently tapped to back the reunited Jimmy Page and Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin).

A few new numbers - "Don't Let It Get You Down," "Altamont," and "I Want to Be There (When You Come)" - proved particularly engaging, with the Bunnymen seeming to conjure back some of the darker, punk-glam essence of Iggy Pop, David Bowie, et al. Too often during the set, you could close your eyes and swear you were at a U2 concert.

All in all, Echo and the Bunnymen put on an inspiring show that, thankfully, avoided dredging up new-wave gimmickry and fashion and concentrated on music.

AMAGANSETT

Gogel to Rory Hogan, Jacqueline Drive, $295,000.

LaGrassa to Diane Sping, Grove Street, $190,000.

Reutershan to Jean-Charles Sprunger, Stony Hill Road, $430,000.

Beja to Chet and Francine Lane, Bittersweet Lane, $172,500.

BRIDGEHAMPTON

Bossio to Mary Moran and Ira Feinberg, Osprey Way, $400,000.

Birdsall to James and Hermine Freed, Noyac Path, $195,000.

Mahoney to Bettysue Hughes, Ocean Road, $550,000.

EAST HAMPTON

Peltz to Paul Zullo, Springwoods Lane, $287,500.

Paster to Michael Purrazzella and Gary Seff, Montauk Highway, $195,000.

Ebbin to Iris Gair, Springy Banks Road, $210,000.

Barnett Const. Corp. to Richard and Donna Hassard, Long Hill Road, $645,000.

Avallone to Richard and Kerri Stevens, Whooping Hollow Road, $175,000.

Moyer to Donald Zucker, the Circle, $295,000.

MONTAUK

ICR of Montauk Ltd. to the Nature Conservancy, Montauk Highway, (the Sanctuary, 339.8 vacant acres) $4,180,000.

NORTHWEST

Weil to Charlotte Abrams, Montauk Avenue, $237,500.

Forman to Robert and Sara Coe, Three Mile Harbor Drive (two harborfront lots), $1,088,000.

Munash to Jeffrey Eisenberg, Bayview Avenue, $269,000.

NOYAC

Timberland Homes to Ronald Guttman and Irene Cheng, Fourteen Hills Court, $240,000.

Lamar to Gennaro and Jennifer Vanacore, Emersen Place, $415,000.

Stuckart to Nikki Wood, Island View Drive, $297,000.

SAG HARBOR

Murac to Claudia Camozzi, Cove Drive, $460,000.

Nelson to David and Priscilla Hartman, Peninsula Drive, $155,000.

Mander to Charles and Elizabeth Cardile and Frank and Lynn Caniglia, Main Street, $747,000.

Ocean View Farms Ltd. to Thomas and Mary Souhrada, Island View Drive, $295,000.

SAGAPONACK

Fox estate to Elio Fox and Anne Isaak, Seascape Lane, $610,000.

SPRINGS

Vajda to Jon Forsberg, Spruce Street, $151,000.

Langer to Thomas Willsen and Thomas Fox, Isle of Wight Road, $235,000.

WAINSCOTT

Adams to Beach Lane Assoc. Inc., Beach Lane (two lots), $950,000.

WATER MILL

Duo Designs Inc. to Bradley and Loretta Kohnke, Stephen Halsey's Path, $537,500.

Mulvany to Frank and Joan Ginsberg, Holly Lane (two lots), $1,800,000.

Eckert to John and Susan Lesser, Seven Ponds Towd Road (two lots), $215,000.

Like the rest of the South Fork, much of Wainscott's and Saga ponack's real estate activity is centered on gobbling up what little vacant land remains. This is the case, said Paul Brennan, the vice president of the local offices of Sotheby's International Realty, whether you're talking about a one-and-a-half-acre parcel or a 60-acre tract.

It's all a matter of "supply and demand," said John Leonard of John Leonard Properties in Sag Harbor. "There's nothing left. . . . What is left is very expensive." Mr. Leonard said he had seen prices in the area go up as much as 50 percent in the last 15 months, yet that hasn't slowed down property sales.

Bill McCoy, a partner in McCoy and McCoy Real Estate in Wainscott, confirmed this week that, in his neck of the woods, there's quite a bit of money floating around and "good properties don't stay on the market very long."

Large Farms For Sale

Historically farming communities, these two neighboring hamlets - one in East Hampton Town and the other in Southampton Town - continue to maintain their small-town appeal. Each still has its little red schoolhouse and stretches of farmland that offer fresh produce in season and vistas year-round.

More and more these days, however, instead of potatoes and corn the farmland in these primarily south-of-the-highway communities is sprouting houses and estates. Sotheby's last week advertised two large farm tracts under contract for sale - the 40-acre Szczepankowski farm (with buildings) in Wainscott and 60 agricultural acres of Cliff Foster's Sagaponack farm. However, these are likely to remain in agricultural use.

Driving Up Prices

The Wainscott farm is in contract for "under, but not by much" an asking price of $6.5 million, according to Mr. Brennan. The potential buyer, whose identity Mr. Brennan would not disclose, is interested in continuing the property's use as a farm.

The Sagaponack farm has been sold to Dan Shedrick, who owns a house in Bridgehampton. The asking price was $7 million. Though some of the property probably will be subdivided into large lots for houses, Lee Foster, Mr. Foster's wife, said a great portion of the land will remain in agricultural use. They "sold the diamond in order to keep the bracelet,"Mrs. Foster said.

Mr. Brennan noted that the buyer's plans reflected the trend toward oversized lots "to maintain a sense of space" for property owners.

The limited amount of vacant land has dampened the spirits of those who would prefer to build their own houses and has driven up asking prices for existing houses, Mr. Leonard said. He suggested that the high prices were slowing down sales of existing houses.

More Tear-Downs

And, because vacant land is all but gone, Mr. McCoy said he expected to see more tear-downs happen in Wainscott in the future, much like a phenomenon occurring in other parts of town where properties in particular areas are in high demand.

As for summer rentals this season in Wainscott and Sagaponack, there are mixed reports. Mr. Brennan said this year's rentals were "on par" with last year's. He said that average summer rentals range from $25,000 to $55,000 but that monthly rentals, especially for August, were off.

Plenty Of Rentals

Mr. McCoy was not as optimistic, saying that rentals "have not been good this year." He said there was quite a stock of rentals still available and that some renters have had to settle for less money or shorter-term leases.

Mr. Leonard said there are still plenty of rentals available, even though the busy Memorial Day weekend has passed, and that the prices are dropping.

"People who haven't rented now are calling and saying 'I'll take July, I'll take August,' which is something they haven't done before," said Mr. Leonard.

For two years, a proposal before the East Hampton Town Planning Board to redraw the boundary lines of a vacant 1.9-acre parcel on the west side of Three Mile Harbor, creating two lots out of three to make the property more marketable, has languished.

The land is in the estate of Mildred Loper Bianco, a lifelong East Hampton resident, who with her husband, Paul, developed Old House Landing Estates nearby and other property overlooking Three Mile Harbor.

Now, the estate has asked the Zoning Board of Appeals to approve "work envelopes" for the proposed lots, and highlighted the dilemma facing town officials and those who own land that is deemed in some way significant. The significance in this case is archeological.

Historic, Prehistoric

The relatively small site, between Springwood Way and the west shore of Three Mile Harbor, contains substantial archeological artifacts, both historic and prehistoric, according to an archeological study done for the Planning Board in 1995.

These include a circular depression that appears to have been the foundation of a residence from between the late 18th and mid-19th centuries that archeologists believe can offer valuable information about the "life ways of people seemingly outside the 'mainstream' of East Hampton society."

In addition, the land is scattered with prehistoric Native American artifacts going back to 3000 B.C. or earlier. The finds "indicate the presence of large food processing and/or heating facilities," and "suggest that there is a small Native American village or encampment present on the Bianco property. . . . No comparable sites have been scientifically studied on the South Fork."

Numerous Sites

The entire area around Three Mile Harbor is considered likely to contain prehistoric remains, according to a 1978 Suffolk County cultural resources inventory. The western side, however, has numerous known archeological sites, with at least 21 within a mile of the Bianco property, according to the report, and more known "to local diggers."

One of these is a Paleo-Indian site (as old as 8000 B.C.) found to the northwest, on the Duke family's Boys Harbor property.

On the Bianco site, the findings were particularly numerous near the present shoreline, an area that is likely to be protected even were the property developed. And, 140 pieces of fire-cracked rock, weighing 47.4 kilograms, were uncovered from one spot there. Archeologists describe the rock as "probably the remains of a large cooking or other kind of food processing facility," or "refuse from a sweat lodge of some sort."

Although the Z.B.A. agreed during a recent work session that it could not consider acting on lots that do not yet legally exist, the process is expected to move forward soon. A revision of the survey map showing precise locations of findings, which the Planning Board has required of the applicant, was being drawn up, Gene Cross, a planning consultant for the estate, said this week.

Three Choices

When the board begins to consider the application again, said Lisa Liquori, director of the Town Planning Department, it will have three choices: It can recommend the property for acquisition, design development of the lots to avoid the most significant areas, or require a full-scale plan to recover the artifacts.

The archeological study was done for the Planning Board by Suzan S. Habib of the Archaeology Shop in Sag Harbor, who completed two phases of it, and by three archeologists with the Institute for Long Island Archeology at the State University at Stony Brook, who completed a third.

National Register?

The institute report concludes that both the historic and prehistoric sites on the Bianco property are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, since they have yielded information important to history and prehistory.

The town has not pursued placing the property on the register, Ms. Liquori said this week, because it would not give it any more protection. The town's energies, she said would be better spent making sure that the archeologically significant areas are identified and protected before construction makes them moot.

Domestic Site

Research about a historic house on the property "failed to identify the occupants of the structure or, for that matter, any description of the property ever having been built upon," according to the three archeologists who did the last phase of the study, David J. Bernstein, Michael J. Lenardi, and Daria E. Merwin.

A one-by-four-meter excavation was dug in what appears as a circular depression (shown on an accompanying map). The archeologists believe it "is the remains of a cellar hole that has partially filled in with building debris and domestic refuse."

Also found there were "large quantities of domestic refuse" - including bones of fish, frog, possibly deer, cow, and pig - "that were consumed as food," bottle fragments, and ceramics. The latter included "pieces of vessels for eating, drinking, and processing food as well as milk pans for making butter and cheese," and pieces of an iron kettle.

Not Miller House

The list goes on: hand-wrought nails, brick, shells, fire-cracked rock, prehistoric bone tools, some small pieces of red ware, a pipe stem, a piece of a metal buckle, and some other prehistoric artifacts, such as "a ground stone adze and a magnificently worked chert projectile point."

The report concludes from the relatively small amount of domestic materials "that the inhabitants of the house were of modest means."

The report cites Jeannette Edwards Rattray's "East Hampton History" to the effect that one Benjamin Miller (1750-1833) owned much of the western side of Three Mile Harbor from Soak Hides to Hand's Creek, but the archeologists present evidence that it is unlikely that the location is the site of Mr. Miller's house.

"Especially Valuable"

"It appears that the structure on the Bianco property was used by individuals on the fringe of East Hampton society," the report states.

"Whether these were squatters of some sort or farm hands employed by Miller is not yet known. In either case they represent one of the least- known segments of early East Hampton society."

"Very little is known of the lives of these individuals - whether Native Americans, African Americans, poorer whites, or migrant laborers -- who were peripheral to what is generally thought of as the 'community' of East Hampton . . . ," the report concludes. "Therefore, their material remains especially valuable for reconstructing their life ways."

Artifacts Used

"Of special interest," according to the study, is that the structure appears to have been partially constructed with prehistoric Native American materials, either "recycled" or mined from the area, which is called a "rich prehistoric site."

In addition to the concentration of prehistoric artifacts, dating from the Terminal and Late Archaic as well as Woodland Periods, near the shore, they were found all over the property, with the exception being the southwest corner.

The archeologists conclude that "it is clear from the types of artifacts recovered that the entire sequence in the manufacturing of stone tools was carried out here."

Also found were quartz flakes, two split cobbles, a few charcoal flecks, an Orient fishtail projectile point, the tip of a quartz tool called a biface, and a grit-tempered pottery shard, among a long list of artifacts. There were few organic materials recovered, however, with the exception of broken pieces of shell and bones.