Don't Wig Out: M. A. Batio Is Kinda Amazing (Nitro? Not So Much)
Sunday, December 4, 2016 at 09:00AM Today's post is from our friend HIM.
When your band is treated like the less enjoyable version of the Vinnie Vincent Invasion, you know something is amiss. When you are compared to Malmsteen, and then try to prove you are better than Yngwie, it is an odd world you inhabit. When your singer is a roided-up fluff-screamer who ends up being the sane part of a marriage, you are definitely not living a normal life.
Alas, this is the tale of Michael Angelo Batio. Why do I, and why should you, care? Well, partially because his frizz-glam question mark of a band Nitro is reuniting with the skin-smithing of no less than Chris Adler (Lamb of God, Megadeth) behind the wig-glue sprayed kit. Because the poodle of a singer, Gillette, was once married to Lita Ford. That dog is now a dawg, covered in tats and MMA drool . . . and with full custody of two kids who think “Kiss Me Deadly” was written about them. Batio? He belongs to the same club as Blackmore and J. L. Turner. All are clients. One of them because of a medical condition. The other two because of vanity and a fecal-ton of talent.
I really don’t care about Nitro. They are an odd detour in the history of metal. And what was once an Aqua Net nightmare of bad hair and questionable jeans looks, reunited, like some MMA video game promo:
I don’t really want to compare Batio to Malmsteen either. That is like comparing meth-induced classical music to a roadside hotel’s shower walls: both have too many scales. And I can’t spank the guitarist for wearing his hair (or his system) how he wants to do so. Like Blackmore, the guy has a right to feel fully hirsute even if genetics (and countless YouTube videos) scream back at him: “WHY?!!!?”
Much has been made about his (and Gillette’s) instructional videos. Similar snarks have been offered regarding the fact that Batio can play a one, two, four, six and ten neck guitar backwards and forwards, all while balancing his checkbook. Like Malmsteen, is that all skill and no soul? Is it technique without passion? Where do they buy their doughnuts? I digress.
My simple point (I made it complicated in honor of him) is this: he is a damn good guitar player. I won’t go to old tape of him shredding a jazz ditty. But I will go to fairly recent events where he paid tribute to another oddball guitarist:
That is some damn fine playing. And I think all twenty people at each event had a great time. I kid. Batio is a badass. But he is a victim of his talent. What makes Blackmore more relevant, if no less eccentric? Simply this: timing, choices, and happenstance. What makes Batio better? He enjoys his slim moments in the sun, and treats his fans with—imagine that?—respect.
Reader Comments (9)
Unlike HIM, I love those albums but it's probably more for the comedy aspect of the intentionally over the top gimmickry of it all.
The album titles give you a pretty good idea of what's in store, though nothing else really sounds anything like them and that's not necessarily a compliment.
O.F.R. (Outf*ckingrageous) and NITRO II: H.W.D.W.S. (Hot, Wet, Dripping With Sweat) are the chronicles of crazy in question. Probably the closest to sanity your going to get out of listening to them is their hilarious cover of Ted Nugent's "Cat Scratch Fever" off Nitro II and a couple of pretty funny power ballads. I also recommend watching their videos in YouTube.
As you'll find it's an acquired taste but no doubt, they ROCK out with their... um... Well, you know where I'm going with this...
If anything was holding them back, aside from the fundamentally limited appeal of their unforgiving "outrageousness", it was probably their record deal with RHINO, a label more known for Power Pop and New Wave, as well as countless retro reissues and compilations and operated (and still does) as an indy distributor more than anything else. In other words, no promotion to speak of.
I, for one, look forward to seeing these guys. Though the tresses may be permanently permed out to baldness, I'm sure the shredding and screaming will be intact.
p.s. HIM, "Kiss Me Deadly" wasn't written by Lita Ford, so how could her kids think it's about them. And as far as who's the culprit in the dissolution of the Ford / Gillette union, we don't really know, as they both probably share in the blame.
Looking back, the shows were almost comical. Small crowds, and the band only knew the songs in the set list, and if they get an encore, they'd choose which songs to play AGAIN.
That being said, the guys were very cool to a 17 year old kid who was a big fan, as was Howie Hubberman and their crew. I thought I was meeting rock stars.
I'll catch this tour if it comes nearby.
But, regarding Nitro v. VVI, I don't see there as being any real choice: VVI hands down, esp. when Robert Fleischman was handling the pipes on the first album. Like JAT said, they simply had better songs. There is cheesy (giggle) and cheesy (ugh). You can guess which band fits where for me.
And you are right, Metalboy! Ford didn't write that song. But I wasn't going to let that stand in the way of a (perhaps coarse) joke! I also hear you re: the he said/she said of their divorce. Trust me, I know there are many sides to tales such as that. All the facts in evidence thus far suggest, however, that things tilt towards Gillette. Not that it matters, save to those personally involved.
Brian C., great (and hilarious) personal story. Just goes to show, acts of kindness from bands we love can mean a great deal.
I could kick myself for not seeing both bands when I had the chance, particularly genius Vinnie Vincent and Mark Slaughter before he blew his voice out.
At least I will now get to see Batio with Gillette. Though Gillette's talents are dubious at best, the two of them performing together will surely put on a helluva show.