This came out in 1999 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
The member of this British teen-pop quintet don’t want to be called a “boy band;” they prefer “lad band.” Whatever.
Call them what you will, it’s clear the boys — sorry, lads — are cut from the same cloth as teen brethren such as BSB, 98° and ’N Sync. J, Abs, Ritchie, Scott and Sean possees all the requisite touchstones: The waist-deep harmonies, the watered-down hip-hop tracks, the touch-of-metal guitars for street cred. Here and there, they’ve even got a decent song; How Do Ya Feel wouldn’t be too out of place on Beck’s new CD (although I suspect their tongues aren’t as far in cheek as his would be). Not that it matters; what ultimately counts is whether they’re cool enough and cute enough for the little girls. Maybe if they changed their name to the Backstreet Lads …
