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Album Preview from J-14 Magazine
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Date: Sep 24, 2000 BSB NEW ALBUM PREVIEW: What their music means to them. It's A Little Bit Country!... Right before their new release, J-14 gives you a special sneak peek at what the Backstreet Boys' third album [4th in Canada and Europe] has to offer! Pop Stardom isn't something you choose -- it chooses you. Who better to know this than the Backstreet Boys, the band that saw 1999 as its crowning year, then watched from the sidelines as that other boy band overshadowed them the following year. So with their third [or fourth] album, set to be released in November, the Boys have something to prove -- that they still have what it takes to strike back. But until the day the new CD hits record store racks, the band's record label, Jive, is enforcing a company-wide code of silence surrounding the much-anticipated release. Luckily, J-14 tracked down top music industry insiders to dig up and deliver what the fab five have in store for you! Hint: It'll be a little bit of pop, R&B, hip-hop, rock -- and even a little bit country! If the musical mix sounds like a difficult act to pull off, it is. But the guys, having spent the last four months working hard to make this album sing, are confident this third effort will rock. "Hopefully, we've got a lot of great stuff that we're going to surprise everybody with," Howie reveals. Perhaps, the biggest surprise of all: the band's desire to get back to the basics of what they're about -- just five fast friends harmonizing and making beautiful music together. But it wasn't all work and no play! These guys managed to squeeze insome much needed fun time. What's In Store... Spending 12 sun-drenched days in the Bahamas brainstorming and writing music -- away from distractions, the media, and even girlfriends, fiances and wives! -- was the prescription for success. "It was a bonding thing for us because, besides touring, we haven't really done anything fun with just us five without our management, without our press people. There were no producers or anybody around us telling us what to do," A.J. recently said. As a result, "We got some significant stuff done down there," BriantellsJ-14. "We've spent some of the best years of our lives together, so now all those experiences cancome out through the next album." "We had so many ideas," adds A.J. excitedly. "As soon as Howie finished writing a song, Nick was there writing a song, and when Nick was done, I was writing a song. It was a constang process of writing music." Not only did the Boys let the lyrics flow, they let loose and jammed on instruments as well! Don't be surprised to hear Nick bang on drums and Kevin play the piano on several songs. "We got about eight songs done that we wrote and produced ourselves. I think every song we did should be on the album," A.J. says proudly. But in the end, Brian tells us that "probably three or four of those songs will go on the album." To round out the rest of the album, the boys once again turned to super-songwriters Diane Warren and Max Martin. The Time Is Right... Though the band's been away for quite some time, "the anticipation for the new album is huge on the radio and for our listeners," says Los Angeles DJ Ellen K, who hosts the syndicated radio show Future Tracks. "Through the entire Eminem, Britney and 'N Sync cravings this year, there has always been a very significant thirst for the Backstreet Boys." And to celebrate their long-awaited return, BSB plans to blast back with a worldwide media blitz. Currently, the band is in talks with MTV to produce a behind-the-scenes special, appear on TRL and film a "Making the Video" episode. They will also make the talk show circuit, sitting down to chag with Rosie O'Donnell, David Letterman and Jay Leno. Capping off the hoopla is a concert tour sponsored by Burger King. Having unleashed the teen pop parade three years ago with "Backstreet Boys," all eyes are on them to see what they'll come up with next. "We'll definitely check it out and listen to it, and enjoy it like everyone else," says Starr Andreeff, the vice president of Smash Music, the management company of boy band No Authority. But given how well 'N Sync's current album has done (selling a record-breaking 2.4 million albums the first week), comparisonsare sure to follow. "Everyone anticipates that this will be a huge record," Rolling Stone's music expert Anthony DeCurtis tells J-14. "But almost anything they do short of topping what 'N Sync did will somehow be seen as a letdown." "Everyone has their own thing," Starr points out, "and there's room for everybody." Giving Fans What They Want!... "The most important thing for them is to make music that connects with their audience," says Billboard's director of charts Geoff Mayfield. At the same time, "an artist has to move forward and continually find new ways to express themselves," adds Eletra's Dane Venabel -- but cautions, "they shouldn't get too far away from the reason that people love them." Of course, the band will still give us their signature R&B-infused pop tunes. But they're also taking chances by trying new things. "This is a great opportunity for us to kind of, in a way, re-establish our individuality as the Backstreet Boys," A.J. says, "and I think that really comes into play as we become more involved as writiers and producers, because nobody can copy something that's only you." Nick says that BSB is evolving and recreating the way Madonna does with every album. "That's how you stay on top," he points out. "Our jobs as entertainers and as recording artists is to make music for everyone out there to enjoy." We can't wait for what lies ahead! Meanwhile, The Wedding... It's not all work for the boys. On June 17, standing before a sea of 180 close friends and family, Kevin gently held the hand of his longtime girlfriend Kristin Willits, looked into her eyes and said, "I do." "It was a wonderful, simple ceremony," Kevin's brother Tim Richardson tells J-14, "especially because it was completely undistrubed by paparazzi." What made the occasion even more special waas the fact that Tim, who is a priest, conducted the ceremony while brother Jerald Jr. served as best man. Of course, Kevin's bandmate buddies Brian, A.J., Howie and Nick watched proudly from the sidelines as Kevintook center stage that eventful day. After seven years of longdistance dating, Kevin finally popped the question to Kristin, a dancer and aspiring actress he met while the two worked at Orlando's Disney MGM Studio theme park. And he did it the old-fashioned way: He asked Kristin's dad for permission to marry her last December, then proposed to her a few days later. While the couple could have gotten married anywhere in the world, Kevin chose to return to his hometown of Lexington, Kentucky, where the ceremony took place in a local cathedral. While revelers in Lexington celebrated the wedding, many BSB fans mourned the loss of a heartthrob, causing many to wonder whether the wedding of Kevin and the engagement of cousin Brian to girlfriend Leighanne Wallace would damen the appeal of the Boys. "I don't necessarily think it's going to be adisaster that he's settling down," says Rolling Stone's Anthony DeCurtis. "What gets a little overlooked in all of this is the music. If they make a really good record, people will still buy their albums."
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