Millennium Review: Dallas Morning News

Back - Index - Submissions - - What is RSS? Date: Jul 27, 2099 Source: Dallas Morning News Submitted By: Teressa Beinhauer Warning.... the Dallas Morning News never gives good reviews about cd's so just letting you know that they do diss them in this article... Backstreet Boys show no signs of growth Group's 'Millennium' just more than sugary pop - By Thor Christensen Anytime you rip into a vapid teen-pop act, somebody inevitably says, 'Hey, don't be so quick to criticize them ... the Beatles and Michael Jackson started out as teen idols, too, you know." True. But then again, Charles Manson started out as a pop singer, so by the same logic, maybe the Backstreet Boys will grow up to be blood-thirsty cult leaders. Both arguments are equally inane. The Backstreet Boys' new CD, Millennium, is neither a preview of greater things to come nor some big statement on the sorry state of today's music: It's just another sugary-but-harmless batch of cookie-cutter pop tunes. Like the New Kids on the Block, 'N Sync and Hason, the Backstreet Boys' monstrous success (their last CD sold 10 million copies) has everything to do with teenage hormones and zilch to do with music. Sure, there's a few catchy melodies here and there on Millennium, and the grooves are faux-funky enough to pack the dance floor at the next grade-school mixer. But take away the five postpubescent studs on the CD cover and Millennium is just 12 overly slick ditties that could pass for rejects from any Boyz II Men album. The monotonous titles ("Don't Want You Back", "I Want It That Way", "Don't Wanna Lose You Now") tell you all you need to know about the level of songwriting here. The CD isn't four minutes old before the Boys whip out the dreaded "fire"/"desire" couplet. A few seconds later, they're overemoting about being "Two worlds apart/Can't reach to your heart" and "Ain't nothing but a heartache/Nothing but a mistake." At least Hason is smart enough to scat-sing when they run out of decent rhymes. The saccharine lyrics would be easier to stomach if there was an ounce of soul or originality in any of these gooey ballads and robotic dance-rock throbbers. But Millennium is the sound of blatant mimicry. At their best, the Backstreet Boys do a passable imitation of Bad-era Michael Jackson. But at their worst- which is the bulk of the CD- they come off like "Soldier of Love"-era Donny Osmond trying to impersonate George Michael. Pop recordings are rated on a scale of 1-4 stars * poor, ** fair, *** good, **** excellent MILLENNIUM GOT * (ONE) STAR Comment on this item. Recent Comments Submitted by: peto4ok Submitted by: snymrik Submitted by: lodo4ka Submitted by: Halz Submitted by: Mary Submitted by: Antony Comment on this item. Next Item: Millennium Review by Space Ghost (Cartoon Network) Prev Item: Millennium Review: Akron/Canton Beacon Journal