With their first studio album in five years, the Backstreet Boys seem to have reappeared and are about to take the world by storm. But how long are they in it for this time, wonders NIKI CHEONG, as he speaks to band member Howie Dorough in a phone interview from Florida.

BOY bands from the past decade have come and gone – some more quietly than others. While splits from bands like Take That almost caused a national emergency, others like 911 or Code Red just disappeared into oblivion. Who? Exactly. That said, many bands have taken the cue from the Rolling Stones, with band members doing their own stuff but not officially calling it quits.

The Spice Girls did it, and every now and then, rumours still crop up about a possible reunion; Take That has just announced a reunion tour (with, or without Robbie Williams) and *N Sync is … well, still taking their break.
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Having toured the U.S. and Europe following the June release of Backstreet Boy’s first album together in five years, next on the Boys’ agenda is bringing their “Never Gone’’tour to fans in the Pacific Rim.

Included in their 10-stop tour, which takes off in Japan on Jan. 7, is a concert in Seoul scheduled for January 14. This is will be their first-ever concert held in South Korea.

From letting readers in on what to expect from their upcoming concert, to how they feel the five stand on the ever-changing pop-music scene and where they are headed both individually and as a group, Backstreet Boys members (Kevin Richardson, Howie D, AJ McLean, Brian Littrel and Nick Carter) shared their thoughts with the The Korea Times in an e-mail interview last weekend.
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Backstreet Boys is going for an image makeover.

They have been known for their goody goody chocolate boy image and are responsible for the whole boy band look which dominated the 90s.

What with their flowing locks and cute dimples they were the ‘ohhh sooo’ cute boys of the music industry. Gone was the glam rock image of the 80s with long hair and frayed jeans.

But this time around The Boys themselves have done a reinvention act. With their new album Nevermind, not only did they change their sound from the bubblegum pop to an acoustic soft rock; with their newest video, they have gone for a complete image makeover.
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Australians may get a boy band fix early next year, with American pop group Backstreet Boys likely to venture Down Under on their first concert tour.

After a five-year break, the boys are back “stronger than ever”, says band member Howie Dorough.

“We are in the midst of trying to fit Australia into the schedule after we go to Japan in January,” Howie said from the United States today.

“So probably end of January, early February.”
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The Backstreet Boys have gone out of their way to downplay their five-year break from the pop world, titling their comeback disc “Never Gone” and embarking on an ambitious summer tour that pulled into the Target Center on Saturday night.

But when the Boys left us, their career was already heading south. The fivesome’s rivals ‘N Sync claimed more fans, sold more tickets and made better records. Instead of trying to keep up with the Timberlakes, the Backstreet Boys retreated into a world of receding hairlines, rehab and one doomed relationship with Paris Hilton.

If they learned anything during all that time away, it wasn’t readily apparent Saturday night. The five Backstreet Boys — who are now in their late 20s to early 30s — performed with saccharine professionalism, like five overgrown Mouseketeers going through the motions because those mortgages won’t pay themselves.
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