Backstreet mania hits capital

Back - Index - Submissions - - What is RSS? Date: Nov 13, 2099 Source: The Ottawa Citizen Submitted By: Saturday 13 November 1999 Hottest ticket in town a bit of an eyeglazer Lynn Saxberg The Ottawa Citizen A squeal loud enough to raise the roof of the Corel Centre went up as the Backstreet Boys descended on their airborne boogie boards to a massive five-sided stage in the middle of the arena. It was partly the sound of relieved fans who actually made it to a concert they bought tickets for three months ago, but it was also a collective release of emotion from thousands of teenage girls losing control at the idea of actually being in the same building as Howie Dorough, 26, A.J. McLean, 20, Nick Carter, 19, Brian Littrell, 24, and Kevin Richardson, 27. Talk about larger than life. Between the lights, space ships and the Star Wars theme, it was an entrance that transformed five quite unremarkable-looking young men into millennium heroes. Their feet on stage, the Boys marched ceremoniously to each side, eliciting another huge scream with each stop. Glow sticks twirled furiously in the audience, everyone was on their feet, and the music hadn't even started yet. The song, of course, was Larger Than Life, a fitting tribute to the phenomenon that is the Backstreet Boys. Accompanied by a full troupe of dancers and a six-piece band, the group also performed Get Down and The One before each Boy took a microphone to say a few meaningful words to the audience. That out of the way, it was on to the business of being the world's top boy band. Unfortunately, that meant slowing down the pace and schlepping through a string of the sappy love songs that seem to make everyone think of the Boys as heartthrobs. Over-emoting was the order of the evening, with lots of finger pointing, hands on the heart, eyes squeezed shut and faces turned skyward. Oh sure, they're decent singers and well-toned dancers, but too much of the show was made up of songs that are insipid pieces of fluff. I was a sucker, however, for The Perfect Fan, the song Brian wrote for his mother. Five mothers and five daughters from the audience suddenly appeared on stage for the Boys to sing to, a sweet move that clearly thrilled the girls (and their moms). But too many slow songs make for a dull show, and Backstreet was right on the edge of eyeglazing. Thankfully, there were enough costume changes and choreographed routines to keep it interesting, as well as the odd flashpot to make sure no one slipped into dreamland. While most of the audience was young and female and not likely to let their eyes wander for a second, it's worth noting that there were also a fair number of boyfriends, husbands, fathers and moms in the audience. Considering that 16 million copies of the Boys' latest disc, Millenium, have been sold (including a million in Canada), it looks like the band is close to transcending the teen pop world that spawned them. They may even morph into something a little more, shall we say, adult, if they can come up with some better songs. In fact, yesterday also brought news that the Boys have re-signed a five-album deal with their record company, Jive Records, to the tune of $60 million. That kind of money puts them in the same league as established superstars like the Rolling Stones. And as opening act Mandy Moore observed in an interview at the Westin Hotel yesterday afternoon, Backstreet attracts a much more diverse audience than certain rival boy bands. The 15-year-old Florida pop singer, whose first CD is yet to be released (look for it next month), has been on the road with the Boys since September and spent the summer touring with 'N Sync. "On the 'N Sync tour -- granted it was a summer tour in outside amphitheatres -- but there were more people like my age, I'd say 13 to 16 or 17. Mostly girls, without parents," said the fresh faced blond girl, clad in warm, grey Club Monaco gear she bought yesterday afternoon at the Rideau Centre store. "And at Backstreet you see quite a few more guys than you see at 'N Sync, and you see 35-year-olds, you see moms, you see dads, you see aunts and uncles, you see brothers and boyfriends. You see everybody. It's such a more diverse crowd." It didn't take long to prove her point. Four 13-year-olds in the lobby hoping to spot a Boy settled for Moore's autograph as the singer left the hotel to go to a radio station. Stacy Makinson and her friends Brittnay Ayotte, Jessica Henry and Lauren Smith are devoted Backstreet fans, but so is Sue Makinson, Stacy's mom. The whole family (father Bill and daughter Emily included) drove from Cornwall for the concert. And because they were staying at the hotel, security guards couldn't kick them out of the lobby, as they did any other fan that was hanging around. "If anybody asks me my favourite group, I'll tell them the Backstreet Boys," said Sue, 36, who was every bit as excited as the girls. "It's good clean, fun pop music. It's really a family thing for us. Did I sing all the way up?" Stacy and her friends nodded. Although the group has a four-metre long banner proclaiming their loyalty to unfurl at the show, they were still hoping to tell a Boy in person. But by 3 p.m., there was no sign that Backstreet was in the hotel. "There's an awful lot of security if they aren't here," one of the girls said. Comment on this item. Next Item: How I Finally Got To See The Backstreet Boys Prev Item: Primed for a dad-daughter evening with the Boys