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New Kids in on the joke, and loving it
DAN HARPER / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS Enlarge Image
New Kids on the Block perform at the MTS Centre tonight.
Near the end of New Kids on the Block's much-anticipated reunion concert at the MTS Centre last night, singer Jordan Knight stood atop the two-level stage, ripped his white shirt open, and clutched his naked chest while crooning Baby I Believe In You.
His shirt fluttered in the winds of a hidden generator.
If a single image could define the Boston-based quintet's show, that would be it: sorta cornball, sorta cheesecake, but always with a wink and a nudge.
The lights went down for the headliners at 8:30 p.m., and a video screen flashed on. "Fifteen years ago... they walked away. One year ago... THEY SHOCKED THE WORLD," the screen blared, as thousands of fans screamed in anticipation.
In fairness, the NKOTB reunion and its hastily assembled 2008 album, The Block, was at least surprising. Twenty-three years after their manufactured debut, the original boy banders are now circling 40. Most thought the reunion window was long closed.
Their fans are likewise all grown up. Outside the arena, instead of the line of bored parents in minivans we saw back in 1991, there were bemused husbands waiting for slightly inebriated wives. But therein lay the charm.
Don't get me wrong: as a musical performance, the reunion concert was a mess. It was like show designers threw every concert cliche against a wall, and decided it all stuck.
There was a momentum-killing "dance cam" bit, where the show stopped so Danny Wood could scan the crowd to find grooving fans. There were also four badly-used female dancers and a memorial video featuring Tupac and Heath Ledger. (It ended with images of the Kids' own departed family; it should have started there too.)
The singing was... uh, not great. Original "cute one" Joey McIntyre's voice is strong, and Jordan Knight can still manage that piercing falsetto. But even with a fortress of backing tracks propping him up on Cover Girl, Wahlberg's voice struggled, cracked, and fell flat. (I'm sorry, Donnie. I still love you. Call me?)
But few in the audience were there for great musicality. They were there for a nostalgia party... and they got it. Two hours, 23 songs, and a handful of costume changes of that, in fact.
If you consider that the New Kids are in on their own kitschy joke... and their gleeful on-stage hamming suggests they are... then the show was nothing short of genius comedic entertainment.
Though the Kids' dancing was slightly stiff, the choreography was tight and deliciously familiar, especially on show-closing hits Step By Step and Hangin' Tough. (They performed the latter in Team Canada jerseys.)
They flew into the air for a "pose off" snapshot at the end of Click Click Click. McIntyre won; his prize was a Canadian flag cape, which he frolicked in while declaring it was "okay as long as it doesn't touch the ground."
They even stayed true to the archetypes they created. Jonathan Knight, "the quiet one," tried very hard not to be seen or heard; bad-boy Wahlberg (along with McIntyre, the clear crowd favourite), grabbed his crotch and drew "I want to have ?" on a dry erase board supplied by a fan. And playboy Jordan Knight... well, see first paragraph.
It was silly. It was tongue-in-cheek. It wasn't art, but it was what those of us from the original NKOTB generation wanted: a frivolous night of fun, savored with the men who first taught us that boys were cute sometimes.
That's all it needed to be.
Concert Review
New Kids on the Block
April 9
MTS Centre
3 stars out of five
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10 Comments
Posted by: ekb
April 10, 2009 at 11:03 PM
I was nine years old when I went the first time and now twenty years past if felt just like the first time I saw them. They still got the "it" factor. I was really impressed with Danny's B-Boy dancing. Fell in love with them all over again.
Posted by: hogie
April 10, 2009 at 5:51 PM
I was at the NKOTB concert last night with my daughter .
I had taken her to the old arena all those years ago when she was a kid to see them .
I don't care what any critics say ... it was everything and more that we could hope for !
The guys are better looking than ever and they sure know how to put on a fun show .You could see how relaxed they were with the crowd .Although there were lots guys in the crowd ( good for them ) most guys are jealous of the attention that boy bands get so they laugh or run them down . Now a smart guy would attend these concerts , observe and learn how to be a hit with the ladies .The guys had every female in the place drooling .
I have no idea what the reporter is refering to when she says that Jordan's voice wasn't the best .....he sounded just like he has all along . He had no problem hitting those high notes .There was nothing wrong with Donnie's voice either or the other guys . I disagree with her also that Joey was the crowd favourite.... Jordan ..Donnie , Danny and Jonathon got just as much applause and screaming . Hey .. we're just glad that we got to see them again !!
They were the original boy band and we don't care how "old " they get .. they will always be our favourite and we would see them whenever we could .
Some things are just SPECIAL .... and seeing the NKOTB is one of them ! We love you guys !
Posted by: lisa
April 10, 2009 at 2:27 PM
I thought it was a great show! It really gave us fans a chance to take a step back in time. I think the show was meant for us to have a great time....and that's exactly what we did! It was so much fun. Yes the "kids" have aged a little, as we all have. It's pretty amazing - I'm still in disbelief that I was even there. I am an original NKOTB fan - been with them since the beginning...they are still as sexy as they were 19 years ago (in some ways even more). There is always going to be haters - there always was! But we still love them, and we will see them again and again, as long as they keep coming back!!
Posted by: dancerdevon
April 10, 2009 at 1:47 PM
I think as an adult I had a lot more fun at this concert than I did 18 years ago. Of course this time around I had 3rd row tickets...and for the record they were worth every penny. The guys were hot and nice to look at at. Which is 90% why I even attended the concery. Those girls in front of me were hilarious with the dry erase boards...they were trying to get a reaction from the group, and they got it...what do you expect when you write "I brought my knee pads with me" and hold it up for them to see! All in all, a great night...I'm so glad they came back so I could relive a childhood fanatasy! Nothing more, nothing less.
Posted by: manitoba29
April 10, 2009 at 12:11 PM
It was a TON of fun, and I think this review summed it up to a tee. Thanks!
Posted by: Einstein
April 10, 2009 at 10:33 AM
Holy cow, Allison, didn't you read the review? It was a G-O-O-D review! NKOTB aren't about to save the world - they're 40-somethings with the sense not to act like 20-somethings! That's all you get for spending your 3rd-millennium money on a 2nd-millennium show, and the same rules apply to the reviewer.
And yes, I have tried to dance and sing at the same time. Never mind the results. But back about 40 years ago, NOBODY got into show biz unless they could dance, and sing, and smile, all at the same time, and all very WELL!! Even if they were only eight years old!
NKOTB were good, but were never the BEST. The Back Street Boys at least had a huge mainstream hit, Back Street's Back, which was actually slightly awesome (check out that bass line) and even males would dance to it. Beat that!
Posted by: lisa
April 10, 2009 at 10:07 AM
I thought it was a great show. I am an ORIGINAL NKOTB fan....with them since the beginning, and I got what I wanted last night...a step back in time! They may be a bit older now, as we all are, but they can still entertain. There is always going to be haters...there always was, but they can put on a show. It was an opportunity for my best friend and I to reconnect with something we never thought we could - our teen years! It was an incredible night of FUN!! and I'm pretty sure that's what the "hardest working MEN in show business" wanted us to have!! Still in disbelief that we were even there last night groovin to the tunes of our "first loves"! Great show guys...we'll be going again and again....as long as you keep coming back!!!
Posted by: shanedes
April 10, 2009 at 9:23 AM
Glad to see Ms Martin enjoyed the conert, sounds like it was exactly was what to be expect from a reunion concert of this magnatude. Although I was not able to attended I can see that for those my age and older who fell in love with the boys who became men this was the show.
Thanks for the review!
Posted by: MYhonestOPINION
April 10, 2009 at 6:25 AM
I heard Ticketmaster were selling tickets 4 for $100. They could barely get 5000 ppl to attend. Ebay scalpers had their tickets marked down to $10. I feel sorry for the people who paid full price to see the show. Old kids been around the block...one too many times
Posted by: alisyn
April 10, 2009 at 1:37 AM
Have you ever tried to dance and sing at the same time? Im doubting that as I think you underate there singing talent for sure. Unlike most artists we see now days, they actually sing LIVE at their concert. Where as britney spears etc amoung other do not..
I thought there concert was good, good blend of old and news tunes, and didnt for once think there singing was "not great"
I am a singer and I know singing, and although they may not be the best singers in the world, I think they held their own and put on a really good show.
I dont think you gave them as much credit as they deserve. KUDOS to them for after 15 years coming back, and making it in the music business again.
I think it was a good concert, and im sure most other would agree.