PLEASE CALL OFFICE FOR AVAILABILITY: 08447 707 788
The Backstreet Boys are a Grammy-nominated American pop group. Performing first in July 1993, the group has charted 12 U.S. Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, 16 UK Top 10 hits, and sold over 110 million albums worldwide, the best selling boyband of all time . Since returning to the music scene in 2005, their sound changed drastically, incorporating only live instruments (some of which they play themselves). The current four-member group consists of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, Brian Littrell, and A. J. McLean. Original member Kevin Richardson left the group on June 23, 2006. but the four-piece refused to rule out a possible return for the singer.
By 1997, pop music was returning to the forefront in United States, with the likes of the Spice Girls and Hanson. Jive and Pearlman decided to bring the boys back to their home country after 8.5 million discs had been sold worldwide. They began recording their second album, Backstreet's Back, releasing "Quit Playing Games With My Heart" in August, coinciding with the release of their second international album, the band released a self-titled album in the US which collected songs from both international albums. They hit big on the U.S. charts, and debuting at #1 in Germany, Norway, Switzerland, Finland and Austria. The two albums sold over 28 million copies worldwide (14 million copies in the U.S.)
In December 1997, the band embarked on a 60-city, 20-country tour. In 1997, Littrell (soon joined by McLean, Richardson and Dorough) brought a lawsuit against Lou Pearlman, as Lou Pearlman was taking an unusually high percentage of the profits made by the band (75%), leaving the Boys barely enough to survive after credits to writers and performers are given separately. The lawsuit also claimed that Pearlman had hidden and misused money earned by the band, and prompted similar lawsuits from other prominent boy bands such as NSYNC. The case was settled in 1998. The Backstreet Boys' sixth album includes various music styles, combining their earlier mid-90's sound with their guitar driven pop/rock sound.
The Backstreet Boys released their new album, Unbreakable, on October 30, 2007. The group's follow-up to 2005's Never Gone is the first effort since Richardson's departure.
On July 25, the first single was confirmed as "Inconsolable," a piano driven power ballad similar to Never Gone's "Incomplete." It was released to radio on August 27th. "Inconsolable" was written and produced by Emanuel Kiriakou (Nick Lachey "What's Left Of Me", Katharine McPhee "Ordinary World"), and co-written by Lindy Robbins and Jess Cates. It was premiered on August 6 by Jive at Z-100, a New York pop radio station.
"Helpless When She Smiles" was the assumed next single from Unbreakable. It has already received airplay on WKSS in Hartford, CT, but this may be because of The WKSS Hey Yo! Christmas Show in which the Backstreet Boys will headline. This news was officially confirmed by the group when they were on Backstage. The Backstreet Boys had expressed discontent with the record label's decision to choose Helpless When She Smiles as the second single, feeling that it sounded too much like their previous singles. Jive Records declined this.
The album has been exceptionally well-received compared to the Backstreet Boys' comeback album Never Gone. It follows the drastic change in their music style on their previous album which has been negatively received by critics. Entertainment Weekly gave the album a B-, which is the highest grade from EW for a Backstreet Boys album since Millennium. SputnikMusic.com said, "Pound for pound and song for song, Unbreakable may just be the best pop album of the year so far" and proceeded on to give the album a 4 (Excellent). A Reviewer from Associated Content, David Nemecek, said "The Backstreet Boys are back with an undeniably strong album" and gave it an 8 out of 10. About.com also gave the album four out of five stars, along with comments such as, "If you are looking for an album of pure pop pleasure, you can not do much better with current releases than Unbreakable."
While the album has received positive reviews, it has not performed as well as its predecessor, Never Gone. Unbreakable opened at #7 on The Billboard 200, selling 81,000 copies in its first week of release. Two weeks after its debut, the album dropped out of the top 100. These low sales may in part be due to the lackluster performance of first single "Inconsolable" which peaked at #86 on The Billboard Hot 100. However, it performed well internationally, debuting #1 in Japan and staying there for another week
