POP MUSIC REVIEWS : Unpolished Passion From Steel Pole Bath Tub

San Francisco’s Steel Pole Bath Tub should be called Everything but the Kitchen Sink.

The trio, which is still largely unknown even on the underground scene, plays a free-form potpourri of thick, soupy guitar reverb, tight, jazz-tinged beat and prerecorded special effects. The result is a convoluted and crazy sound that’s unique, but often requires patience.

Saturday at the half-empty Troubadour, the band churned out strong, impressive, uninhibited jams, but ultimately lacked enough structure to turn the writhing sonics into definable songs. Though hardly elitist in its attitude (i.e.--”too bad if you don’t get it”), Steel Pole Bath Tub played its heart out for the sparse crowd, but was simply too unbridled to hit a memorable stride.

Guitarist Mike Morasky’s shrill, nasal voice also didn’t help. Instead of melding with the music, it bounced obtrusively atop the thick din. It was hard to tell exactly where songs stopped and new ones started, as most of the outbursts were strung together by the ever-present hum of feedback.

The best numbers were a cover of Cheap Trick’s “Surrender,” where the band added its own wavy sheets of distortion, and Black Sabbath’s “Paranoid,” simply because those songs provided a stable base for the band’s inherent wildness.

Steel Pole Bath Tub plays with a rare virtuosity and passion. Now all it needs is some boundaries.