For Counting Crows frontman Adam Duritz, home these days is the Hollywood

Hills.

That's where the longtime Bay Area resident lives now, where many of his

friends are; and it's where his band intends to squirrel itself away once

again to record their next album sometime next year, said the 33-year-old

singer/songwriter.

"I suppose we'll be heading back to renting a house there to record," Duritz

said on the phone from Los Angeles, of the mega-successful power-pop band's

plans to get to work on an as-yet untitled third album in a private house in

the Hollywood Hills. "Hollywood is my home now. It's where I live."

It's also where he apparently finds creative inspiration.

Pleased with the production process and musical energy that went into their

last record, Duritz said he and the Counting Crows will conduct their

recording sessions much like those that gave birth to the band's

platinum-selling sophomore release Recovering The Satellites (1996).

Once again, they plan to rent a home in the Hills and stay there until

they're done. In fact, Duritz said he wouldn't be surprised to see producer

Gil Norton behind the controls again.

And don't expect any major sonic surprises from the melody-driven rockers, he

added, explaining that the growing influence of electronica and techno on

today's music has had little impact on his style.

The dread-locked songwriter has already written one new tune, "Barely Out Of

Tuesday," which the band has performed on its current tour and

which will in all likelihood end up on the next release. "It's a midtempo

type of song and feels pretty much like the music we do," guitarist David

Bryson said, backstage after a recent gig at the Shoreline Amphitheatre in

Mountain View, Calif. "We also have a few ideas kicking around for other

tunes."

With the Counting Crows, one general rule typically holds true, Duritz said:

If he writes it, they record it.

"I don't usually write spare songs," Duritz said. "If I complete something

that we play on tour, it usually finds a place somewhere on an album."

The Counting Crows' guitar-driven sound can best be described as a hybrid of

Van Morrison and mid-'80s era R.E.M. From the band's early hit "Round Here"

off their breakthrough debut August and Everything After, to the more

reflective "Have You Seen Me Lately," from the new one, Duritz has

established himself as a songwriter who draws heavily from life experience.

His songs have in the past three years ranged from emotional tales of love

and loss, to highly introspective tunes which address the struggles of life

on the road and the conflicts that come with fame.

The soft-spoken singer has repeatedly spoken about his difficulties adapting

to life in the spotlight in interviews and in live performances. The

conflicts have caused him to alter lyrics in some older songs to suit his new

perspective. These days, for instance, when he sings the band's breakthrough

hit "Mr. Jones," a song about dreaming of fame, he has updated the words to

reflect the experiences of one who has seen success and realized it's not all

that. "A song like 'Mr. Jones' is still meaningful in many ways, though not

germane to my life," said Duritz. "I definitely wanted to be a star. But I've already

realized the recognizeability."

Still, things are getting better, he added. While Duritz said he's had

problems in the past walking around his old stomping grounds of Berkeley,

Calif. since the Counting Crows found stardom, he said he more recently

toured the main university strip of Telegraph Avenue with a few friends

pretty much hassle free.

Whether the new album will continue to paint the portrait of a man in

conflict with his success is anyone's guess. Apparently, even for Duritz.

"I don't like to think about what something is going to sound like," he said.

"I just have not thought about it. A record is the book of your life. I would

just rather do it piece by piece and see what happens."

For Duritz, whose parents and friends took the drive down to the Shoreline

last month to welcome him back, little has changed in the past year, except

perhaps his command of the stage. Countless hours on the road, performing for

thousands each night and trying to live up to expectations while fending off

criticisms that, as Duritz recalled, labeled him, among other things, "a

whiner" has matured the band leader.

Despite having only recently broken up with his girlfriend of two years,

Duritz, who has also begun a small indie label, E Pluribus Unum, seemed

optimistic about his future and that of the Counting Crows. Though he has

plans to produce a few bands as side projects, when it comes to making music,

he's got a one-track mind, he said.

"It's hard to see myself with any other band really," Duritz explained. "Sure

you could play with a lot of great musicians, but playing a song is a

different thing than playing an instrument."

It's been a long year for the Counting Crows, and there's reason to believe

it's coming to a close as the band heads into a final college-town tour of

the Midwest this month, films an MTV live concert performance and,

perhaps, heads out for a final tour of Europe before shutting down everything by

Christmas.

The band is also considering opening for the Rolling Stones in Europe for the

Bridges To Babylon tour, which would find them joining the select list of mega acts recruited by

Mick Jagger and gang, which includes Pearl Jam, Foo Fighters and Smashing

Pumpkins.

"If they want us along, we'll go," Duritz said, adding that that would be the

band's main motivation to travel overseas.

"Remember, we are really tired," he said. "It's been a stressful year for

everyone." [Wed., Oct. 29, 1997, 9 a.m. PDT]