For anyone around for the boy-band hysteria in Orlando in the 1990s, there’s something a little sad about a Backstreet Boys homecoming that fits into the relatively cozy confines of Hard Rock Live.
It’s hard to shake that mental image that the aging “boys” are only a couple tweaks away from becoming Elvis in Vegas or launching a dinner show in Branson, Mo.
Maybe it’s just the circle of life in pop music.
But if being downsized is a bummer for the remaining group members – Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean and Brian Littrell – it wasn’t apparent in a visually splashy sold-out show on Tuesday at Hard Rock. If anything, the guys delivered an arena-sized spectacle at point-blank range, a 95-minute production that was consistently fun to watch even if you don’t want to admit it later.
Hakuna Matata!
Yeah, a fair amount of the choreography is still laughable, especially all those semaphore-style hand signals. And most of the two dozen makeup artists listed in the closing credits on the big video screens must have been assigned solely to slathering on AJ’s mascara.
And songs such as the monotonous “PDA” are mind-numbing reminders that not all of the Backstreet Boys catalog comes equipped with big, lovable choruses. Inexplicably, the group decided to extend that clunker on Tuesday, inciting one of those tired competitions to see which side of the room was louder.
They really needn’t have bothered. Although it was a smaller crowd than in the old days, the screaming was formidable from a mostly female audience that looked to be twentysomething and beyond.
Some of the songs were worth the excitement: The medley of “Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)” and “As Long As You Love Me” was a blend of voices, dance moves and infectious hooks descendant from the Motown tradition.
And the elaborately produced video spoofs that put the Backstreet Boys into films such as Fight Club and The Matrix turned a costume-change time-killer into a nice showcase for the group’s sense of comedy.
A little more of that personality in the actual performance would have been nice, especially in place of a few of the sappy ballads that made the singers (especially Nick) go all goofy with melodrama.
Maybe he was just caught up in the moment.
“This is where it all began,” Brian said, waxing nostalgic. “It’s been 17 long years, but it’s gone by so fast.”
If the glory days are gone, the Backstreet Boys can still turn back the clock at least for a night.
Source: Orlando Sentinel
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