Hoary Conventions From Rock/Funk Semi-Pioneers

Having recently regrouped around its four core members, semi-pioneering rock/funk outfit Mother’s Finest took it to the Palace stage on Friday in support of the recent “comeback” LP, “If Looks Could Kill.” Although the show was promoted under the auspices of the Black Rock Coalition’s L.A. chapter, the joint was only half full, which didn’t seem to dampen the band’s enthusiasm nor its affection for such hoary conventions as loooong bass solos, drum solos, bar-band call ‘n’ response routines and so on and so on and scooby-doo-bee-doobie. . . . Aside from a couple of vintage MF numbers, the Chicago-spawned sextet concentrated on the new jamz, which--with the exception of the womanifesto “Legs & Lipstick”--generally fell closer to industrial strength funk than machine-tooled metal. Truthfully, the hour-plus set did nothing to dispel the notion that black rock bands have the same inalienable right to be mediocre as their white counterparts. And, given the opportunity, they will .