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September 20, 2005 - Denis Armstrong of the Ottawa Sun was on hand for the Backstreet Boys concert at Corel Centre on Monday night (September 12). Armstrong writes, "If the boys really are a pre-packaged entertainment commodity, as they say in marketing lingo, at least they're a very good one, as their opening set proved, delivering three torch-songs in three-, four- and even five-part harmonies with dazzling choreography and special effects while constantly charming the fans into a frenzy and making it appear as easy and spontaneous as it is highly rehearsed." Read more.

September 20, 2005 - Anonymous writes "These days, no one really believes that the 'TRL' countdown is decided by the actual votes. It's all politics. To protest this and show support for the Backstreet Boys, BSB fans decided to rally outside of 'TRL' studios in Times Square on September 15, 2005. Those who went said nearly 200 people came out for the rally. The 'TRL' crew kicked out from the studio all the fans who were involved. The 'TRL' camermen were ordered not to let what was happening outside go on the air. So during the show on September 15, the crowd outside was pretty much never shown. It's kind of like what they do in sports. If a fan runs onto the field during a baseball game, the cameras pan away from the person so he or she won't get any facetime on the air. It's a way of discouraging others from following suit and ensuring they get no fame out of it. However, someone from CBS's 'The Early Show' [popdirt.com note: both CBS and MTV are owned by Viacom] witnessed the whole thing and invited the protesters onto Friday's show to tell their story. Check out high quality photos from the rally at the BackstreetDirtForums."

September 20, 2005 - KTVK profiled Evie Webber's battle with half a heart and how music from the Backstreet Boys helped the 2-year-old's recovery. Nick Carter and Brian Littrell visited Evie at the Phoenix Children's Hospital when they were in town on their 'Never Gone' tour. Download and watch at JustBackstreet.net.

September 20, 2005 - Rob Williams of the Winnipeg Sun reviewed the Backstreet Boys concert at MTS Centre on Wednesday (September 7). Williams writes, "The new material was well received, but it was the older material like 'Shape of My Heart', 'I Want it That Way', 'Larger Than Life' and 'As Long As You Love Me' that elicited the most ferocious screams." Read more.

September 20, 2005 - Adrian Mack of straight.com reviewed the Backstreet Boys concert at GM Place in Vancouver, BC on September 3rd. "In all other ways, the Boys seem to play down their personalities," Mack writes. "If it isn't obvious from the depressingly pristine harmonies, the Backstreet Boys are really about assimilation. Brian Littrell is permitted a very small amount of character as the de facto leader, but Christ knows what Howie Dorough and Kevin Richardson do—aside from looking kind of like Jerry Seinfeld and Kevin Pollack. The Nuremberg-like emergence of the group as it descends an illuminated staircase is plenty impressive, but it renders the actual performance a little anticlimactic." Read more.

September 20, 2005 - The biggest change for the reunited Backstreet Boys came in AJ McLean's life, as he rose from the depths of rehab to now being sober for three years. "I'm just happy to be out here doing it again sober this time around," McLean admitted to 'Extra'. "I can appreciate these guys more. There's a lot more respect amongst us five, and they can trust me again." Bandmate Nick Carter added, "I think it gave us some time to really learn about ourselves. Now I think we relate to each other much better than we ever have before." Read more, and watch a video clip, here.

September 10, 2005 - Bay City News reports that power was restored to about 1,000 customers in Concord following an outage that halted a Backstreet Boys concert at the Chronicle Pavilion Tuesday night. Concertgoers who were disappointed about the show cut short were able to use their tickets at another Backstreet Boys concert Wednesday in Sacramento. Read more.

September 10, 2005 - Tonya Paul of the Mercury-Register was on hand for the Backstreet Boys' concert at Sleep Train Amphitheater on Wednesday night. After revealing how AJ McLean injured his right leg (a fan at their show in Las Vegas had thrown a light stick on stage and he slipped on it), Paul writes, "The encore was great with 'Incomplete' and 'Backstreets Back'. The evening was powerful with a overwhelming response from the fans. The Backstreet Boys have come a long way and continue to grow with their wonderful talent." Read more.

September 10, 2005 - Backstreet Boys, Kaci Brown, and Seminole County performed at the Chronicle Pavilion on Tuesday (August 30) in Concord, California. Check out pictures from GettyImages.

September 10, 2005 - The Backstreet Boys brought their 'Weird World' 2005 Tour to the Sleep Train Amphitheatre in Marysville, California on Wednesday (August 31). Check out pictures from EntercomSacramento.com.

September 10, 2005 - Fans of the Backstreet Boys have launched a website, westandtogether.net, to organize a network of fans in the fight against MTV, who they claim refuse to play new videos by the boy band, fearing the much-maligned genre of music which appeals an age range outside of the music network's demographic. "We Stand together' BSB fans of the world," the website's statement read. "MTV 'didn't want to open Pandora's box'. That's why we have started 'We Stand together: Operation Open Pandora's Box.' Here, you'll find links to other fans in the fight against MTV. Make your voice be heard! MTV can't hold BSB and their fans down forever!" Check it out here.

September 10, 2005 - In a bid to save his solo career, Brian McFadden is turning to Nick Carter to give him a rockier sound. "Brian called Nick out of the blue and asked if he could write for him for his next album," a spokesperson for the Backstreet Boys star told The Mirror. "Nick doesn't know him personally but he remembered him from Westlife. They chatted on the phone and got on really well. Nick liked the idea of working together and they've decided they'll hook up when he's in the UK for the Boys' sold-out tour in October." Read more. 

September 10, 2005 - Backstreet Boys were photographed at The Aladdin Hotel and Casino Resort's Curve Nightclub on Sunday (August 28) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Check out pictures from WireImage.

September 10, 2005 - RollingStone.com caught up with Tommy Lee for a Q&A and asked the Motley Crue drummer how long he debated having Backstreet Boys star Nick Carter on his new album 'Tommyland: The Ride'. "I knew that was coming," Lee laughed. "Nick wanted me to write for him on his solo record. He wanted something edgier, and I was like, 'Hmm, I don't know'. But I took a meeting with him, and much to my surprise he was a huge rock fan. I popped out his CD player in his car and it was filled with Physical Graffiti and AC/DC and Sabbath. It kinda blew my mind. We did these two killer tracks together, so I said, 'Can I use one of those?' Let me tell you something: That motherfu**er came into the studio and out-partied people like Slash. [Nick's] a fu**ing maniac. And that's coming from me. I mean, I'm serious." Read more.

September 10, 2005 - The Backstreet Boys performed during the band's 'Never Gone' tour at the Mandalay Bay Events Center on Saturday (August 27) in Las Vegas, Nevada. Check out pictures from GettyImages.

September 10, 2005 - The Las Vegas Review Journal reports Justin Timberlake, girlfriend Cameron Diaz, Trace Ayala, and actress Elisha Cuthbert were together at a cabana near the deejay booth Saturday night at Pure in Caesars Palace. The *NSYNC star noticed that the Backstreet Boys were at tables on the dance floor, asked a club manager to invite them to his area, and they combined parties. They add that Timberlake and Diaz were spotted the next day playing golf at Southern Highlands.

September 10, 2005 - Christina Fuoco of liveDaily was on hand for the Backstreet Boys' concert at Phoenix's Dodge Theatre on Friday (August 26). Fuoco writes, "...the Backstreet Boys may have been absent for five years, and they may be gearing their material toward a more mature audience, but they're still a guilty pleasure." Read more.

September 3, 2005 - Fans of the Backstreet Boys wrote in to the Staten Island Advance to thank Erin Semler for one of the few positive reviews the boy band have received on their 'Never Gone' comeback tour. "I just wanted to thank you for the most fair and open-minded review of the 'Never Gone' tour that I have read to date," Diane Repash wrote. "Most of the reviews that I have read so far have either been outright cruel, or ambiguous where the reviewer will totally confuse me as to whether they liked the show or not. Even if they say a few nice things, there are always a few snide comments thrown in." Read more praise for the positive review here.

September 3, 2005 - Bob Gendron of the Chicago Tribune reviewed the Backstreet Boys' concert on August 19th at Northerly Island. Gendron writes, "Following a four-year layoff, the group is staging a comeback, having refashioned their tinsel-toned dance sound and become Def Leppard lite. Live, the sonic makeover turned out to be a mistake. Nothing about the Backstreet Boys' cotton-candy music or uneven choreography rocked. Instead of spotlighting the quintet's harmonizing capabilities, the hair-metal anthems and power ballads were often tailored for one singer and rendered the remaining members useless." Read more.

September 3, 2005 - Never Gone the 4th studio release from Backstreet Boys had been certified Platinum by the R.I.A.A. The album was released June 14, 2005 and debuted on Billboard album chart at #3* in the U.S. Worldwide. Never Gone topped the album charts with #1's in Japan (on the international chart), Germany, India, Chile, and Korea with Top 5 album debuts in Austria, Switzerland, Holland, Italy, Mexico and Brazil. It has gone Platinum in Canada, 2 times Platinum Japan, Gold in UK, Germany, Italy, Taiwan, Mexico, and Switzerland. To date Never Gone has sold nearly 3 million copies worldwide. Read more.

September 3, 2005 - The Backstreet Boys performed at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre in Irvine, California on Thursday (August 25). Check out pictures from GlobePhotos.

September 3, 2005 - The Backstreet Boys are featured in the new issue of YAM magazine. Check out scans of the 2-page feature at JustBackstreet.net.

September 3, 2005 - Smile writes "Upon wrapping up the North American leg of the current "Never Gone World Tour", the Backstreet Boys will be hitting the following countries: Sweden, Norway, Germany, Denmark, Switzerland, Italy, Holland, Belgium, Ireland, England, Spain, Portugal, and Japan. For exact dates and locations click here."

September 3, 2005 - Anonymous writes "The following email was sent into a Backstreet Boys fansite (Littrellfans.net) online by Leighanne Littrell (Brian Litterells wife) and her assistant Carey regarding MTV and why they have stopped playing 'Just Want You To Know' on MTV. Here is what they wrote: [...] Also, a little FYI for you to do with what you would like. At present time MTV states they do not want to play BSB's music because they do not want pop music to make a comeback. Their quote is that they don't want to open Pandora's Box. Anything the fans could do to support the boys and not to give MTV the power to decide that what the world should and should not hear. This is the second time MTV has tried to hold down the BSB from becoming the best that they can be. If there is anything you can do to help, it would be greatly appreciated. [...]" 

September 3, 2005 - Theresa Cano of the Arizona Republic reviewed the Backstreet Boys' concert at Dodge Theatre on Friday night (August 26). Cano writes, "Thankfully, the group ditched their cheesy futuristic, padded uniforms of past concerts for a much more stylish, urban look. One thing that the group did retain from previous shows was their well choreographed dance routines. Even though oldest member Richardson is fast approaching 34, the boy band moves still worked in the scheme of the show and drew plenty of delirious screams from the crowd." Read more.

September 3, 2005 - Michael Alan Goldberg of the Phoenix New Times provided a satirical fictional transcript between Nick Carter and AJ McLean on the telephone, comparing the Backstreet Boys reunion to "Hitler invading Russia and how he fu**ed it up 'cause he didn't learn from Napoleon's mistakes." Read more.

September 3, 2005 - The New York Post reports actress Bai Ling was spotted chatting with Backstreet Boys star Nick Carter and exchanging numbers. "One of Bai's friends called Nick's people to arrange a meeting," a source revealed. "She has a big crush on him."

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