Backstreet Boys are back

By Xiao Min

Nearly a decade after their initial success, teen idol group the Backstreet Boys will appear at the Shanghai Grand Stage tomorrow, redeeming the promise they made two years ago to their fans in the city.

The Shanghai performance is part of the band's Asia tour. On January 7, they performed in Tokyo to an audience of 50,000. After completing a Beijing concert yesterday, they will arrive in Shanghai late this afternoon.

The content list for the Shanghai concert has been basically decided, according to sources with the organizer. They will sing 21 songs during the more than 2-hour concert. Among these, eight songs come from their new album "Never Gone".

Having been silent for nearly five years following their last studio album, the Backstreet Boys returned last June with "Never Gone", with 12 songs reflecting the mature ideals of the quintet.

Another 12 songs for the concerts will be their classic works: "The Call," "More Than That," "Shape of My Heart," "The One," "I Want It That Way," "Show Me The Meaning Of Being Lonely," "Larger Than Life," "As Long As You Love Me," "I'll Never Break Your Heart," "Drowning," "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)" and "Everybody." These familiar songs could transform the concert into a huge Karaoke party.

The band should give the audience some surprises with their newly arranged dances. Special equipment will add visual effects.

The five singers that comprise the Backstreet Boys are Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, AJ McLean, Kevin Richardson and Nick Carter. When they made their debut with the platinum single "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)" - followed by such radio staples as "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)," "All I Have To Give" and the No.1 (in 18 nations) "I Want It That Way" - the Backstreet Boys rose to a high position in the field of popular music.

They sold more than 13 million copies each of their first two albums, "Backstreet Boys" (1997) and the "Millennium" (1999).

The band spent more than a year making their album "Never Gone." The project features personal, upfront vocals, coupled with production that spares on drum loops and synthesizers. The pandemic hooks and velvet harmonies are still there, expressing hope, loss, redemption and love.

The title track, "Never Gone," is written by Kevin Richardson with Gary Baker and Steve Diamond, the song pays tribute to the death of Richardson's father.

"That song has really been important to each one of us," AJ McLean said on the band's official website. "In addition to the loss of Kevin's father, I lost both of my grandparents, Nick his grandmother and Howie his sister. We've all experienced great losses, so this song really touches us personally."

7:30 pm, January 18
Shanghai Grand Stage
1111, North Caoxi Road
100 yuan - 1,580 yuan