Backstreet Boys
“I’m a house of cards/ in a hurricane/ A reckless ride
In the pouring rain/ She cuts me and the pain
Is all I wanna feel/ She’ll dance away just like a child
She drives me crazy/ Drives me wild
But I’m helpless when she smiles.”
These lines are taken from the song “Helpless When She Smiles” from the sixth studio album of the Backstreet Boys, Unbreakable. Well, yes, the boys have returned, minus singer Kevin Richardson who had left to be with his wife and new baby. The four remaining boys, or rather men, Howie Dorough, Nick Carter, Brian Littrel and AJ McLean have brought us Unbreakable featuring the hit single “Inconsolable”.
The album is true to the Backstreet Boys although now a little more mature in it’s musical style, gone are the cheesy pop beats of their early 90’s releases and appropriately so considering we are now in 2008, a whole decade on from their first albums.
The album comes in 2 formats: a basic 14 track CD in the usual plastic case with inner sleeve, the other version is the deluxe edition which features 17 tracks. It comes in a fold out card case which contains a small fold out poster of the guys in one pocket, the inner booklet featuring pictures and details of the songs in another pocket and obviously the CD itself in the remaining pocket.
The tracks are well placed, flowing into each other well and making the album easy to listen to, however with this album, unlike their previous work, it is seen that a lot of the tracks are a little too similar, the majority being soulful ballads, perfect for the romantics out there but a little disappointing for the other fans who enjoy their edgier upbeat tracks, the ones that had a little added darkness to their themes or lyrics.
Of the 17 tracks on the deluxe album the final three, “Downpour” “In Pieces” and “Nowhere to go” are the bonus ones, not found on the standard album. They are certainly tracks worth getting the deluxe album for, they may only be ballads with a slightly more upbeat feel but they are well written and performed and considering the two versions of the album generally cost the same you’re better off going for the extra tracks and making the most of your money.
In general all the tracks are very likeable. “Any other way” is the closest to the previously mentioned edgy and dark tracks. It has a good beat throughout the track with a classic build up in the chorus and the voices of the guys working perfectly together as they always did.
“One in a million” follows the trend of a slightly curious track, something all their albums have had, it’s beat has a slightly hypnotic feel to it and they really seem to be testing their voices on the track. “Panic” is another preferred track.
“Helpless When She Smiles” and “Inconsolable” are probably the best tracks in the album. While their voices still sound great together and they still harmonize well, one can notice the absence of former band member Kevin, he had the deepest voice of the five and on some of the tracks it is quite apparent that he is no longer in the group, this doesn’t take away from the overall enjoyment of the album though.
The group plans to head into the studio in the spring of 2009 to begin work on their next album, after they finish the Unbreakable World Tour of 2008, with plans to hopefully release the album sometime the next year, or early 2010. In between that time AJ Mclean announced on 19 March 2008 that he’s finished recording and will release his first solo material some time in 2008.
Overall, it’s a great album for Backstreet Boys fans and boy-band fans in general. The heavy metal, rock, dance, trance...all those other music style fans probably wont like the album, but the Backstreet Boys have never tried to appeal to everybody and have never denied the type of band they were and the fan base they were aimed at, as with all music albums.
Subham Basu, Coordinator,
ex-St James’
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