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

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.

SOURCE

Backstreet Boys tour makes a stop at DTE Energy Music Theatre on Friday

by Christina Fuoco-Karasinski | Contributing writer

Tuesday August 05, 2008, 12:03 PM

The Backstreet Boys will bring their tour to Clarkston's DTE Energy Music Theatre on Friday.

Taking a break from the Backstreet Boys' world tour was a depressing time for singer Howie Dorough as his father died from brain cancer. But he's charged up and ready to head back out on the road for the best therapy yet -- love from his fans.

"They are great," Dorough said during a phone interview from his California home. "They're unbelievable. We have some of the best fans all around the world that are just so supportive. I'm blessed."

Dorough and the rest of the Backstreet Boys -- Brian Littrell, Nick Carter and A.J. McLean -- are touring in support if their latest album, 2007's "Unbreakable," most of which the group is performing live.

"I'm actually really excited to get back out there," Dorough said. "I feel like we've put on a great show that, to this date, we've taken over to Tokyo, Asia, Australia and all of Europe. I'm excited to bring it back to the states and Canada. It's a great show.

"It's going to take people down memory lane with all the hits. With 'Unbreakable,' we do about three-quarters of the record. It's really cool. It's a high-energy, theatrical show with lots of ups and down with the ballads and up-tempos. I think it's going to help people for two hours get away from whatever they have going on, relax and have fun."

For the Backstreet Boys, "Unbreakable" took about 18 months to create. The Grammy Award-winning group recorded 35 songs and chose the best 14 to put on the record. Dorough said the length of the time in the studio reflects the group's dedication to putting out the best product.

"We obviously want to set the bar as high as possible for each record, higher than the last record. We always take pride in just making sure we have the songs that we feel are all potential singles. We're not your normal band that can just go in the studio and crank out an album in a month or two. We believe that songs come along, ideas of your album change as you get creative in the whole process."

Currently, the Backstreet Boys are working on new material, both for the group and its members' solo projects. For the Backstreet Boys' new album, they've so far laid down one new song, an as-of-yet untitled number co-written by Ryan Tedder, lead singer of OneRepublic.

"He's really, really great," Dorough said. "I foresee us possibly working with him. He has the same management. We're just going to go out there and really explore. There's a lot of new writers who have come to the table since the last album. We're going to do what we can to make it once again the best record. We're going to do a lot of writing ourselves but as well reach out to great producers to help us."

As for solo material, Dorough, whose mother is Puerto Rican, is working on a Latin-English-themed album.

"I'm kind of exploring my roots in that direction," he said. "I'm doing something that's a mixture of English and Spanish -- Spanglish -- some Latin rhythms. I've grown up listening to Jon Secada, whom I've had a chance to do some writing with, and just watching the careers of Enrique (Iglesias) and Ricky (Martin), and people I think have done a good job of crossing over. I'm going to do something in that vein as well."

Dorough is confident that fans will enjoy his solo material when it comes out sometime in 2009.

"Together as a group we have a strong, strong humungous fan base," Dorough said. "We're blessed, as well, as we each have our niche markets and our own personal fans. We have individual fans outside of the group. I really notice that, for me, being part Spanish I've always had a calling, a really big appreciation from all of the Latin fans."

SOURCE

Backstreet Boys raise the roof at private party

Matthew Pearson, The Ottawa Citizen

Published: Tuesday, August 05, 2008

OTTAWA - The red carpet looked a little worse for wear, but that didn't stop the Backstreet Boys from basking in the glory of screaming fans and bursting flashbulbs Monday night at an after-party following their concert at Scotiabank Place.

A throng of young women - and a few young men - took over half a block of Clarence Street in advance of the Boys' arrival at the Tila Tequila nightclub. Traffic on the street was chaos as party-goers and curious on-lookers also jammed the street in front of the club, hoping to catch a glimpse of the longtime heartthrobs, known for such hits as, I Want It That Way and Larger Than Life.

A short burst of screams greeted a pristine, white stretch limousine as it pulled up and stopped in front of the club, but it did not contain the guests of honour. They arrived, instead, minutes later in a green minivan and entered the club surrounded by a flank of beefy security guards.

Three of the BAckstreet Boys, from left, Howie Dorough, Nick Carter; and A. J. McLean, joined fans for a private party Monday night after their show at ScotiaBank Place.

Nick Carter, AJ. McLean and Howie Dorough posed for photos on the red carpet before entering the club, which was packed to the rafters with rambunctious fans, some waving homemade cardboard signs. The group's fourth member, Brian Littrell, was not at the party.

The club throbbed with dance music, but the sound was pierced by screams as the Boys commandeered a small V.I.P. area adjacent to the bar. There they snacked on snacked on sandwiches, fresh veggies and sipped champagne while being surrounded on all sides - and from a small landing above - by seemingly adoring fans.

"This is friggin' amazing," a smiling Nick Carter said, scanning the packed club. The Boys are attending similar events in Toronto and Montreal as part of their current, 13-stop Canadian tour, in support of their 2007 record, Unbreakable.

This tour is their first as a quartet. Kevin Richardson left the group in 2006 to start a family. When asked if being down a man means they each have to work harder, the trio joked it just means they're on time now.

But soft-spoken Dorough added, "It's a bit more work, but I think we're up for the challenge."

McLean agreed. Sporting a bushy beard and a white knitted cap, he called the Canadian stops so far "amazing" and singled out Ottawa's crowd of about 6,000 people as particularly raucous.

"Our sound engineer told us tonight the screams were louder decibels than a gun shot, which is pretty insane," he said.

It's been more than 15 years since the Backstreet Boys performed their first concert at SeaWorld in Orlando, Florida.

Carter said the group's longevity is a sign that fans still like what the Boys are doing, even if, as he admitted, Unbreakable did not feature the same calibre of hit single as previous records.

"We know we're a couple steps away and a song away from reaching our second peak," he said.

With that, the few members of the media were ushered out, leaving the Backstreet Boys alone with all of those fans.

© The Ottawa Citizen 2008
SOURCE

Backstreet 'Boys' in fighting form

Mixing early career hits with songs from their new album Unbreakable, the band shows it still has the moves and songs to get the girls screaming

T'CHA DUNLEVY, The Gazette

Published: Wednesday, August 06

They've still got it - the power to make a crowd of 12,200 mostly female fans scream so loud it hurts, that is. Earplugs, fast! Ahh, that's better.

The Backstreet Boys played the Bell Centre last night in support of their sixth album, Unbreakable, released last year - their first without original member Kevin Richardson, who left the group in 2006.

If there was any doubt as to the ongoing allegiance of their audience, it was quashed even before the show began, as cheers broke out in waves. But that was nothing compared with the outburst when the concert finally started.

They might not be "Boys" anymore, but these guys have no trouble pulling out their old boy-band moves.

They came out swinging with the boxing ring-themed opener Larger Than Life (complete with gloves, hoodies and synchronized dance steps), making it clear they were not above giving the people what they want - in this case, a balance of upbeat pop hits and fist-clenching ballads.

They quickly traded in their robes for black leather jackets, and followed with another oldie, Everyone.

Having paid tribute to their past, they dropped three new ones - the upbeat Any Other Way and two torch songs, You Can Let Go and Unmistakable - reminding fans that there is a new album on the shelves.

But it was the night's sixth song, I Want It That Way, that really got the party going.

The singalong was immense, providing the first truly communal moment of the evening, and prompting member Brian Littrell to hold his microphone out to the audience. "You sing," he said. And they did.

"Comment ça va, Québec?" Howie Dorough asked. "Hello, Montreal. I can speak on behalf of the guys and say it's an honour to be here in Montreal. This is where it all started. We'll never forget you guys. We were just reminiscing today about how many great times we've had here, from playing the hot air balloons festival to the Millennium tour when we played here five nights."

They delivered Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely while sitting around a card table, the crowd backing them on every line.

A mid-show medley brought the house down with the early- career hits Quit Playing Games (With My Heart), I'll Never Break Your Heart and All I Have to Give. And the set-closing Everybody (Backstreet's Back) had fans dancing in the stands.

Each one emerged on his own to sing a track from either previously released or forthcoming solo albums - with mixed results.

This show was not about new material or any single member of the group. It was about the Backstreet Boys as band, as phenomenon and as childhood nostalgia act.

Yep, even kids remember the good old days, and the hits that went along with them.

The Backstreet Boys might not be as big as they once were; they might be getting up there; but as long as they can get this kind of adoring reception from this big a crowd, you can bet they'll keep coming back.

tdunlevy@thegazette.canwest.com

© The Gazette (Montreal) 2008
SOURCE