Mello Mello’s An Abstract Love Story: Down to Earth, Love, Sexy Drama

by Mark Kirby,

Mello Mello: Rich Reddy & Xtravagentways

Neo Soul is the antidote to the pervasiveness of whack R&B; so-called music that
replaced the feelings, experiences, hopes and dreams of the average man or woman with contrived
images and dreams of unattainable lavish lifestyles… of opulent wealth and perpetual sex with
fantasy women. He didn’t start the trend but Eddie Murphy set the standard with his absurd ballad, the
title track on his 1985 album ‘How Could It Be’, the record which spawned “Party All The Time.”
Murphy is seen in a mansion, white of course, dressed in a white robe, and playing a white piano and
warbling in a falsetto about how hard it is to be rich and date super models. Now all R&B has
sunk to this level, aided and abetted by rap culture with its desperate, cartoonish materialism.

Soul music back in the day - the ’60s and ’70s - had songs like “Beauty Is Only Skin Deep” with lyrics like, “A pretty face you may not possess, but what I
like about you is your tenderness.” You had songs where homeboy admitted straight out that he was
an average hard workin’ dude or just poor, like the man in the often covered tune “The Poor Side of
Town” by Johnny Rivers: “That rich guy you’ve been seein’ / Must have put you down / So welcome
back baby / To the poor side of town.” You had songs full of real life wisdom like “Mama Said
There’d Be Days Like This.” No more sentiments like these in R&B.

Thankfully we have neo soul artists like Angie Stone and D’Angelo and two New
Jacks from Arizona, Mello Mello. Mixing rap and soul rooted in the soil of the classics, they
are immediately comparable to OutKast. But whereas, even at the beginning, OutKast did one rap
dominated song, with a vocal hook or chorus, or, conversely, a vocal number with a rap thrown in,
Mello Mello has integrated the two parts with
vocalist Rich Reddy and rapper Emcee Xtravagentways.
Their sound, created by producer Raycean,
is restrained and tasteful with a relaxed vibe that suits the album’s theme. Conceived as a
unified concept album - rare today in iPod culture - ‘
An Abstract Love Story‘ it starts with mellow party jam where they extol their
charms and invite you into their world, the world of love songs.

The rest of the CD is made up of love songs of various shades; from the initial
step up and game spitting on “I Just Wanna Love You” (”I can hit with the charm that you just can’t
see / Have your mind in the clouds like the finest weed / Help me bring to life this dream to
share with you everything that belongs to me / … it ain’t about the late night call I just want to
have it all”), to the erotic romantic come on of “The Best Thing for U Iz Me” (”The best thing for
you is me … recognize your destiny”), and through rough patches of hurt in the song “Come Home”
and the confusion of “Do You Luv Me or Hate Me.”

Girls cheat and love fades in the real world
that this music lives in and Mello Mello relate this in “Movin’ On,” a cut that really lays in on
the line: “I gotta move on / ’cause all the love is gone / ain’t no use in holdin’ on / you did me
wrong and now I’m gone.” But just like in real life you can’t keep a brother down so they end
with a hopeful party song called “Steppin’ Out” where they plan to get back in the game with the
hotties at the club. Unlike a rap version of the club song, which is all about power and beefin’ and
scaring girls into sleeping with you ’cause you’re so thugged out, it’s clear that, like the songs
on the entire CD, these brothers are mellow mellow, and looking for that crazy sexy good loving.
An Abstract Love Story sits pe!
rfectly in a niche that was once filled by Motown, one where people who are “grown … or young,
hip and still maturing” can get something from the music. Remember, beauty’s only skin deep.

www.mello-soul.com

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Tony Adamo’s Music Reviewed By Amazon.co.uk’s Stuart Hamilton

Review By: Stuart Hamilton Amazon.co.uk

Jazz vocalist Tony Adamo has taken a sideways step with his latest CD, moving into a world of
late night New Orleans style funk, rhythm and Blues, despite its origins in the plastic world of
Hollywood, California. The first thing that leaps out you is the voice. Imagine, if you can, Lou
Rawls fronting Tower of Power, and you’ll have an idea of where the music offered up here is coming
from. And it’s a mighty fine place to be, especially on the self penned material which just pulses
with late night grooves.

With a punchy horn section blowing in all the right places and a funky rhythm section hitting
all the right beats, the topping of Neil Larsens organ is just icing on the cake. Actually, I’ve
just been reading the credits and not only is ‘Groove Therapy’ one of the highlights but it actually
features the legendary Doc Kupka from Tower of Power blowing baritone sax on a tribute to - Doc
Kupka! So, looks like that ‘Lou Rawls fronting Tower of Power’ statement I made earlier may be
right on the mark. The album also features an appearance by another legend in the shape of Paul
Jackson, bass guitarist from Herbie Hancock’s Head Hunters.

Although Adamo does sometimes slip into pure jazz, it’s when he sticks to the sultry and sweaty
grooves of Joe Zawinul’s ‘Mercy Mercy Mercy’ and his own ‘No Strings’, ‘Lolita’ and the
aforementioned ‘Groove Therapy’ that he really makes his mark. The album does veer around a bit in style
and flavour, which is slightly to its detriment as the ballads, in particular, miss the mark. It
actually would have been a better album shorn of the two closing numbers ‘Stolen Moments’ and ‘Speak
Low’, which drift away rather than finishing with a killer blow. But the vocals and performances
do make it worth a listen, especially when that irresistible groove kicks in.

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Indie-Music.com Announces The Top 25 CDs And Top 25 MP3s Of 2007

Indie-Music.com, the online musician magazine and directory, has announced the results of its
Top 25 CDs & MP3s of 2007, spotlighting the best indie talent in all genres and exposing these
deserving artists to a larger audience hungry for new music.

Winners were chosen in 2 categories: The Top 25 CDs among the hundreds of independent discs
reviewed on the site in 2007; and the Top 25 MP3s from the thousands of songs posted to the website
this year. Criteria for judging included performance, production, and song quality.

One of the most respected and imitated indie music sites on the web,
Indie-Music.com has been serving the Independent Music Community since 1996 with monthly Featured Artists, CD Reviews, streaming audio, how-to
articles, industry directory, and much-needed recognition. The site offers a wealth of information to
artists trying to survive & thrive in today’s competitive music industry.

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