Backstreet Boys Capture Their Screaming Young Fans

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The Backstreet Boys, KeyArena, Seattle, Friday.

They've been branded as a teeny-bopper group, an irritating deja vu of The New Kids on the Block. Their music has been described as unoriginal bubble-gum R&B, soothing cotton candy for the teen masses. But the frenzied fans who attended Friday night's Backstreet Boys concert could care less about what the critics think. Their crooning, cuddly, pelvic-thrusting idols delivered the goods.

"It was everything I expected," said Gina Allamano, a 17-year-old from Seattle who screamed during most of the nearly two-hour show and had to be peeled from the railing by security guards.

It didn't take much to ignite this tinder box of mostly teen girls, after they were prepped by the anemic, British, "popabilly" star Jimmy Ray and the cute, but annoyingly squeaky Aaron Carter - 10-year-old brother of Backstreet's Nick Carter.

And when the five teen deities finally came on, they did their job well, prancing about the stage, beating their chests to love songs and dancing in sync to some highly aerobic choreography.

The quintet proved admirably that it can indeed harmonize, covering Shai's "If I Ever Fall in Love," and portions of "I'll Never Break Your Heart" a cappella. The boys also showed a sense of humor and passable skills playing instruments when they momentarily kicked the band offstage for their top-five single "Quit Playing

Games (With My Heart)."

And where they fell a little short, they made it up to their audience with a suggestive snake-like move, flowers tossed into the crowd or the caress of a gym-toned pec.

In a constant fit of high-pitched squeals, the crowd was often goaded into higher decibels, especially during some of the group's solo performances. Howie D. (a k a Howie Dorough) tore into a new tune, "My Heart Stays with You," rubbed a bouquet of roses up and down his perfectly spritzed torso and tore off his satiny pink shirt. Sensitive Brian "B-Rok" Littrell surprised fans with his newly acquired skills on the guitar, ably playing at least three chords while singing "That's What She Said," a new number that he actually wrote.

A.J. McLean, the tattooed member most afflicted with pelvic tremors, steamed things up to "Lay Down Beside Me." And sweet-faced Nick Carter seemed to draw the most weepy adoring looks and screams with "Heaven in Your Eyes," despite a small squeak during a long wail.

But for most fans, technical perfection seemed to be the least of their concerns. And the quintet remained true to its reputation as feel-good, pop entertainers, keeping the audience pumped until the end with an encore of its hits, "We've Got It Goin' On," "Get Down," and "Everybody (Backstreet's Back)."

"I don't think they're original," said 14-year-old Wing Roeter, who's more into rock bands like Feeder, Sublime and Green Day.

" . . . But the great thing about the Backstreet Boys is their interaction with the fans. They feed off each other, and they both support each other. . . . Everybody's just having fun while they're young."