Backstreet's back

The Boys return to the stage and spotlight

Mike Devlin, Canwest News Service

Published: Monday, August 04, 2008

The Backstreet Boys were the fresh-scrubbed face of music nine years ago, jostling for pop supremacy with Britney Spears and *NSYNC and becoming trivia question footnotes along the way (Q: What is the only group in history to have three consecutive albums certified for sales of over one million units in Canada? A: Backstreet Boys.)

Aside from ex-*NSYNC heartthrob Justin Timberlake, Backstreet Boys -- now men, some with boys of their own -- are the only ones working with any consistency. The band's current world tour features 13 Canadian stops, (they play Ottawa's Scotiabank Place tonight) and while the impending dates haven't caused traffic jams or heart attacks, as they once did, Backstreet's back and drawing positive notices for its live show.

"I don't think we can ever give them enough," said singer Howie Dorough, the day following the first of two concerts in St. John's, N.L.

"The energy on stage, the energy in the audience -- everything was 10-plus. The fans walked away, hopefully, feeling they got a truly entertaining show that was worth waiting for."

The group took a five-year break from the studio following 2000's Black & Blue, and toured only once between 2001 and 2005. With that, the momentum of Backstreetmania was effectively dislodged. Sales-wise, the group has never recovered.

Its legacy of a decade ago remains intact. At the turn of the millennium, its members graced the cover of Rolling Stone magazine three times during an 18-month span, helping the group sell upwards of 100-million CDs worldwide, while its videos for I Want it That Way, Shape of My Heart and Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely were blazed upon MuchMusic and MTV at a clip rarely seen before or since.

The group, and its grip on all forms of media, is less omnipresent nowadays. But the lower profile is met with relief by its four members, one of whom has children and two of whom are married.

Two years ago, prior to the recording of the group's 2007 album, Unbreakable, group member Kevin Richardson split amicably from the band.

Time away from each other has produced plenty of new music, not all of which falls under the Backstreet Boys banner.

Work is well underway on the band's sixth album. Dorough figures the current tour of Canada will affect the direction, primarily because the group is back to doing what it does best for the Unbreakable Tour: singing and dancing.

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