Backstreet boys back with a new attitude
By Nekesa Mumbi Moodi
August 16, 2005
The associated press

If nothing else, the Backstreet Boys are realistic.

Reunited after four years, they don't have any illusions that they'll be able to dominate the pop scene as they did when boy bands ruled the world.

"We know that we're gonna have to pay our dues again and we know that we're going to have to start from scratch because everything has changed," said A.J. McLean, the heavily tattooed, shades-wearing member of the group that plays Riverbend tonight.

"We're not looking to be the group that we were in '99 and 2000."

Just a few years ago, the Backstreet Boys burst out of Orlando, Fla., to become a pop phenomenon. Their three albums sold more than 35 million copies and ushered in a new teen music craze, buoyed by their soulful harmonies, synchronized dance steps, clean-cut good looks and teen-fanzine charm.

But then, "Behind The Music"-style troubles plagued the quintet - McLean's substance abuse problems led him to rehab, and infighting, management changes and other problems beset the group. Meanwhile, hip-hop supplanted teen pop from atop the charts.

So in 2001, the disillusioned fivesome went their separate ways.

Now, fully recharged, the Backstreet Boys have returned with "Never Gone," their first full studio album since the 8 million-selling "Black & Blue" in 2000. They think they still have a shot at reaching a new audience with a more adult, edgier sound that tilts more toward rock than pop.

"We feel as strongly about this record as we did when 'Millennium' came out," Brian Littrell, 30, said of their blockbuster 1999 album that sold than 13 million copies.

"We know where we're at, and we know where we fit," said Nick Carter, the youngest of the group at 25. "And I love the fact that we're underdogs again."