POP MUSIC REVIEW : Steel Pulse Needs Infusion of Style

It probably wasn’t a great idea for members of the British reggae band Steel Pulse to wear white lab coats during Tuesday’s Universal Amphitheatre show. That just emphasised the clinical nature of the band’s brand of reggae.

The seven-man outfit performed with such taut precision that, though it was often musically impressive, there was little room for the kind of spontaneous playfulness that can make a show by even an average reggae band engaging.

But then, Steel Pulse is no average reggae band, and the sheer quality of Tuesday’s concert often overshadowed some of the inherent drawbacks. David Hinds (whose amazing chimney of dreadlocks is now so tall that he doubles it over and binds it with a headband) is a spirited performer and a fine if derivative (of Bob Marley, naturally) singer and writer.

It’s hard to imagine that the band could function without him, as it had to do when immigration problems prevented him from coming along when the band opened the recent INXS U.S. tour. Co-MVP honors go to bassist Alvin Ewen, who gave the loping music a bigger bottom than is found on the recent “State of Emergency” album.

Still, Steel Pulse seems in need of something to inject a bit more life into its music: some bold adventures into rock and soul territory--a loose, funky horn section . . . the righteous fire of a Bunny Wailer or Burning Spear . . . something.

L.A.’s Untouchables opened the concert with a set that showed it has completed its transition from ska party band to frat-rock-soul party band with a bunch of very funky new material. Still lotsa fun, still no big deal.