Boys bring it all back flawlessly

Lara Purvis, The Ottawa Citizen

Published: Tuesday, August 05, 2008

It was what the Backstreet Boys do best, whipping a crowd of young adoring women into a bouncing sing-a-long frenzy, through warm harmonies and dizzying dance moves.

A decade ago, the five boys were the dreams of teeny-boppers across the world, but it was clear last night at

Scotiabank Place that the Backstreet Boys haven't strayed far from those same hearts.

The crowd of around 6,000 consisted of mostly women -- young adults in their 20s and 30s -- the very fans whose teenage bedrooms would have been plastered with posters of the boys.

The night opened with Girlicious, a sexy, gyrating foursome created by Pussycat Dolls's founder, Robin Antin. The popular group's eye-catching dance moves and feminine lyrics energized the expectant crowd till they were shrill with excitement for the headlining act.

The reunion tour is called the Unbreakable World Tour, a nod at the longevity of the boy-band's famous pop-songs.

With the crowd's vocal chords warmed up by Girlicious, the Backstreet Boys entered the stage to deafening screams. In sensational lighting, they wore bright satin boxing robes, leaping onstage into a boxing ring for the 1999 single, Larger than Life. Tight, loud and ferocious, they danced through choreographed punches, hooks and ducks.

Now only a foursome -- Kevin Richardson left in 2006 -- it didn't take long to reconcile the four men on stage with the boys they were during their early international success. While they may be sporting a few grey hairs, the years hadn't touched their warm harmonies, nor taken the edge off their dance moves.

Arms waved and lighters were held up as the four offered up the hits from their earlier albums: the 1997 Backstreet's Back; 1999's Millennium and from 2000, Black and Blue.

Known for their theatrical shows, last night's audience was not to be disappointed.

With a costume change for almost every song, the boxing ring was soon replaced by a card table around which the boys sat, singing through Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely. Then, bar stools lined up along the stage, they crooned through I Will Love You More Than That.

With their years of experience showing in the flawless performance, the whole experience -- costume changes, smooth lighting and the four-part dances -- may have seemed clichéd, but admittedly, even for this rocker, it was riveting.

And yet with everything a nostalgic memory, it was refreshing to see the band introduce live versions of their 2007 album, Unbreakable. With the maturity level stepped up a notch, in was in these songs that one saw live instruments highlighted through harder, grittier rock.

But as if wary of alienating their long-time fans with their new tunes, it wasn't long before the boys dove back into their long-time singles and famous crooning -- always in step with each other, always smiling and chatting with their audience.

As they reached out, mid-song, to touch the hands of front-row fans, it was evident the affection went both ways.

Sure, the crowd hadn't forgotten their favourite boy-band. But what was touching, was that in turn, the Backstreet Boys had clearly not forgotten their fans.

SOURCE