SONG REVIEWED: "Emotional Blackmail "
IF YOU'RE MORE THAN A LITTLE SICK OF TUNING INTO LOCAL ROCK STATIONS AND HEARING MACHINE-GUN DRUMS AND LOW-E STRINGS, OR RAP WITH A LITTLE METAL ADDED FOR GOOD MEASURE (NOT THAT EITHER OF THOSE ARE BAD, BUT IT JUST SO HAPPENS THAT THOSE ARE THE TRENDS THAT THE U.S. MAJOR LABELS AND MTV ARE CURRENTLY BEATING TO DEATH)....THEN YOU SHOULD CHECK OUT "THE BIG PAYOFF", THE DEBUT DISC FROM ATELLO. WITH MEMBERS HAILING FROM NEW YORK AND NEW JERSEY, ATELLO PLAYS THEIR OWN BRAND OF CATCHY, HOOK-DRIVEN HARD ROCK TO AUDIENCES UP AND DOWN THE EAST COAST. INCLUDED IN THEIR LONG LIST OF IMPRESSIVE OPENING CREDITS, YOU'LL SEE THAT THEY HAVE OPENED FOR FIREHOUSE, LYNCH MOB, AND STEVE WHITEMAN (FORMERLY OF KIX). ATELLO HAS ALSO HELD ONTO THE TOP SPOT ON THE BILLBOARD TALENT NET FOR MULTIPLE WEEKS. IF "EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL" SOUNDS FAMILIAR TO SOME NEW YORKERS, IT'S BECAUSE THE SONG WAS RE-VAMPED AS A TRIBUTE TO OPIE & ANTHONY'S "WHIP 'EM OUT WEDNESDAY"..."EMOTIONAL BLACKMAIL" DOESN'T WASTE ANY TIME HITTING YOU ACROSS THE FACE WITH A TRUCKLOAD OF DRUMS AND GUITAR RIFFS; HOWEVER, AS I HAVE SAID MANY TIMES BEFORE, NEITHER OF WHICH MEANS DICK IF THE BAND CAN'T WRITE A GOOD SONG, WHICH THIS CERTIANLY IS. YOU DON'T REALLY HAVE TO PROBE TERRIBLY DEEP TO FIND THE MEANING IN THE LYRICS. IT'S YOUR BASIC, "HEY BITCH, I CAN'T STAND YOU BUT I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU" THEME WHICH RUNS THROUGH THIS TUNE. LYRICALLY, THEY RANK WITH FIREHOUSE, WHO CAN WRITE VERY CATCHY SONGS, WITHOUT A WHOLE LOT OF RHETORIC BEING SPEWED FORTH. IT HAS BEEN SAID MANY TIMES THAT IF YOU'RE LYRICS ARE ABOUT SPECIFIC EVENTS OR PEOPLE, YOU'RE GOING TO DATE YOUR MUSIC, BUT IF YOU WRITE ABOUT FEELINGS, THEN YOUR MUSIC WILL STAND A BETTER CHANCE OF BEING TIMELESS.
ATELLO STANDS A GOOD CHANCE OF STRIKING A DEAL OVERSEAS, BECAUSE THE MARKET FOR THIS KIND OF MUSIC ISN'T EXACTLY HUGE IN THE U.S. THE MUSIC IS ARENA-READY, ALL SOMEONE NEEDS TO DO IS STICK THEM IN AN ARENA.
