Keeping alive the best San Francisco acid-rock tradition, Sopwith Camel can't be pinned down into an easy category.

A Camel performance is likely to begin with hand cymbals, bell ringing and atonal jazz stylings, move quickly into rinky-tinky rock sounds, back off with a Latin-flavored chant and, while waiting for inspiration to guide the next selection, the piano player launches into a quick, improvised rag.

That's just about how it went last night at Berkeley's New Orleans House. The historic San Francisco rock band performs there again tonight.

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Sopwith Camel became the first San Francisco acid group to hit national record charts in 1966 with the irresistable ditty: "Hello, Hello," a tune they still occasionally perform.

After the first flush of success, the group broke up. It reorganized two years ago, after a three and a half-year layoff. The band's first album in six years will be released this fall by Warner Brothers. Four of the original quintet -- Peter Kraemer, Terry MacNeil, Martin Beard and Norman Mayell -- remain. The fifth member, William Truckaway, is now a solo recording artist.

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At the New Orleans House, Kraemer handled all vocals, switching off on tenor and soprano saxophones and bamboo flute, adding a rambling dance step here and there. MacNeil doubled on guitar and electric piano, on the latter supplying touches of the Sopwith Camel rinky-tink sound.

The Kraemer-MacNeil compositions draw from a variety of musical sources, but lyrically maintain complete originality. Song titles -- "Astronaut Food," "Sleazy Street," "Sneaky Smith," "Fazon," "Scorpio" -- hint at the zany, strange approach to songwriting.

Instrumentally the band plays well together, handling standard changes and improvisations with equal ease. They emphasize melodies, not beat, and created a number of beautiful passage.

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