THEY'VE GOT WATCHA WANT; ROC EN ESPANOL PERFORMERS GET TOGETHER FOR LATIN VERSION OF WARPED TOUR.

Byline: Fred Shuster Music Writer

Watcha, roughly translated, means ``check it out'' - and that's exactly what audiences are doing as the inaugural version of this edgy Latin-rock caravan tour rock 'n' rolls its way around the country.

People are finally discovering Latin rock is much more than simply la vida loca.

You've heard all about Ricky Martin, Jennifer Lopez and other top-selling Hispanic-causing-panic performers riding the mucho caliente Latin-pop craze all the way to the bank.

But another less well-known Latin musical world exists. And while it may require a bit more effort to discover the experimental sounds of Cafe Tacuba than to hear Lopez's current Top 10 smash, ``If You Had My Love,'' the universe of Latino alternative rock just got closer.

That's the point of the Watcha tour.

The 11-date trek, produced by the organizers of the annual hard-rock- and thrash-fueled Warped tour, accents a genre-bending and quite varied lineup that includes Cafe Tacuba, Puya, Molotov, Illya Kuryaki, Control Machete, Todos Tus Muertos, Fishbone, Los Mocosos, Bersuit, Enanitos Verdes, Union 13, Chris Perez and Viva Malpache.

The high-energy roadshow hits the 6,000-seat Greek Theatre on Sunday, following dates in Florida, Texas (four shows) and Arizona.

``It seemed like the perfect time to unite the creativity of rock en espanol and Latin hip-hop with the spirit of Warped,'' explains Kevin Lyman, co-founder and producer of the sister tours. ``With the current success of Latin music, we wanted to give exposure to the more underground sounds that culturally diverse Latino and Anglo youth are embracing.''

Of course, salsa, mambo, rumba and other Latin rhythms made their mark on the American musical map long ago. After all, Gloria Estefan, Celia Cruz, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Carlos Santana, Tito Puente, Ritchie Valens, Los Lobos and Ruben Blades, among many others, scored hits, pioneered new sounds and became household names.

But while the most successful of the new crop, such as Martin and Lopez, are enjoying success with hits sung in English, another bunch of bilingual Latin artists are mixing thrash, hard-rock and hip-hop while aiming for the tattooed and teen-aged end of the spectrum.

The eclectic Watcha lineup ranges from the innovative Cafe Tacuba to the Santana-inspired Afro-funk of Los Mocosos to the bilingual power-pop of Perez, widower of slain Tejano superstar Selena.

It's as varied a bill as the Latin genre itself - and the bands know it.

``This tour is a brand name to identify different types of music,'' said bassist Quique Rangel of Mexico City's Cafe Tacuba, one of Watcha's best-known names. ``It gives people a chance to experience the different visions of this music. In a place like Mexico City at the end of the century, there isn't just one culture but a lot of cultures existing together.''

The band, whose arty new Warner Bros. release, ``Reves/Yo Soy'' (``Backwards/I Am''), is an all-instrumental sonic free-for-all that recalls the Kronos Quartet alongside the ambient soundscapes of Brian Eno, has received airplay on public-radio stations at the same time that it's been favorably compared to Beck.

``Our music is a response to the place where we live and the times we live in,'' Rangel said.

A multicultural environment far from Mexico City but closer to Los Angeles inspired the sprawling San Francisco outfit Los Mocosos, a Latin-funk act also on Watcha who are somewhat similar to Latin-tinged '70s funk acts like Malo. Los Mocosos includes musicians from Santana, Tower of Power and Primus.

``The Bay Area is a melting pot of cultures, and that's what inspires us,'' says Los Mocosos leader Piero ``El Malo'' Ornelas. ``The thing about Latin music is it took awhile to reach the average person, just like hip-hop did. Eighteen years ago, people in the Midwest weren't listening to hip-hop. Today, they are.''

True enough. But today, it's much easier to find records by artists such as, for example, Cafe Tacuba, Puya and Ozomatli - all of whom are signed to major labels - in out-of-the-way places. And many of Watcha's diverse range of acts have been embraced by college- and public-radio throughout this country.

A tennis-shoe-wearing skateboard kid can just as easily pick up the new effort by Mexico City's Mana on the WEA Latina label as they can the new Limp Bizkit.

And that's the new cross-cultural era Watcha hopes to capitalize on.

The tour came together when political fire-starters and Mexican rap-rockers Molotov were invited to appear on the summer's Warped tour. It soon became clear the time had arrived for a ``Latin Warped,'' a multi-act Latin-based alt-rock summer festival, Lyman said.

``We didn't expect it to be financially successful,'' Lyman admits. ``We're building a bridge to the future.''

That bridge also leads to Puya, a Puerto Rico-bred quartet that switches from a swinging Afro-Cuban pulse to metallic frenzy in the space of a song. The band, signed to MCA Records, broke ground this summer as part of the highly successful OzzFest '99 tour headlined by Black Sabbath.

``Our music used to be underground,'' said Puya bassist Harold Hopkins Miranda. ``Now, there's lots of new people getting into it. It's growing all the time because we're playing new places everyday.''

One day, maybe, Puya and Cafe Tacuba might just be as widely known as Martin and Lopez.

Asked about his experience on Watcha, Ornelas enthused about the production crew, borrowed from Warped, who don't all speak Spanish but have gone beyond the call of duty for the various acts on tour.

``They've helped when cars have broken down or when some of the younger musicians who've never been out on the road before needed moral support,'' Ornelas said. ``Some of them have even had to use sign language to communicate with the guys who don't speak English. But the whole experience has been great. It's just been a blast.''

Watcha, of course, is just one of many rock en espanol or Latin music events coming to Los Angeles in this summer of Rickymania. Forthcoming dates at the Greek alone include Marc Anthony, Los Lobos, and the Ritmo de Corazon '99 show featuring Maldita Vecindad and Los Fabulosos Cadillacs.

Meanwhile, a three-act bill featuring Santana plus leading Latin-rockers Mana and Los Angeles' own Ozomatli has sold out four nights at the Anaheim Pond.

``We realize Watcha is a gamble,'' tour producer Lyman offers. ``But we're looking to the future. These bands are going to be the next big commercial breakthrough in alternative rock. They say 12 percent of the population will be Latino by next year. This music hits on two fronts - it's good music and it reflects the culture.''

THE FACTS

What: Watcha.

Who: Cafe Tacuba, Puya, Molotov, Illya Kuryaki, Control Machete, Todos Tus Muertos, Fishbone, Los Mocosos, Bersuit, Enanitos Verdes, Union 13, Chris Perez and Viva Malpache.

Where: Greek Theatre, 2700 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles.

When: 4 p.m. Sunday.

Tickets: $25 to $45

Information: [phone].

CAPTION(S):

9 Photos

Photo: (1--Cover--Color) Cafe Tacuba

(2--Cover--Color) Puya

(3--Cover--Color) Chris Perez Band

(4--Cover--Color) Molotov

(5--6) Chris Perez (left and on the cover), widower of Selena, is taking his pop-oriented band, above, on the Watcha tour of Latino acts.

(7) Watcha also features the San Francisco-based Los Mocosos, which includes members of Santana, Tower of Power and Primus.

(8) Viva Malpache is also on the trek, which was conceived by the same people responsible for the Warped tour.

(9) The 11-date Watcha tour of Latin-oriented rock acts, which stops Sunday at the Greek Theatre, also features Bersuit.