'NSYNC Fans Can Finally Sing Along At Rose Bowl Show
Though Celebrity was just released Tuesday, many had lyrics memorized by show time.
"I gotta tell you, this is probably the most exciting night of the tour." — JC Chasez
PASADENA, California - Los Angeles-area 'NSYNC fans took Justin Timberlake up on his challenge to memorize the lyrics to Celebrity in time for their concert at the Rose Bowl on Tuesday night.
At least, there were enough diligent devotees in the house to make a distinct hum rise from the crowd of 60,000-plus during the hooks of such tunes as "The Two of Us," "Celebrity" and "Up Against the Wall."
"What is today? The 24th, right?" Joey Fatone asked midway through the show, scanning a sea of glow sticks and strained larynxes from the satellite stage. "This is the biggest album release party I've ever seen."
Like concerts as disparate from an 'NSYNC show as a Phish fest, the party began in the parking lot, with Celebrity's first single, "Pop," blaring from cars and minivans decorated with slogans like "Honk if you love 'NSYNC."
"It's the dirty pop party, and it's never gonna fade out," said 15-year-old Teena Baxley, who wore an 'NSYNC bandana and a candy necklace with the letters "JC." "It's so cool we get to see them the day the album is out. It's definitely the best day of my life."
'NSYNC were in a celebratory mood themselves, peppering their high-energy, high-tech performance with frequent references to Celebrity's arrival.
"I gotta tell you, this is probably the most exciting night of the tour," JC Chasez said when introducing "The Two of Us" early on in the show.
Because Celebrity's release was pushed back four weeks, 'NSYNC spent the first two months of the PopOdyssey Tour acting as a sort of live Napster, previewing the album's material (see "'NSYNC Tour Opener: Dirty Pop And Matching Chaps"). The group sought an edgier sound for the follow-up to last year's record-breaking No Strings Attached, teaming with producers from outside the boy-band cache such as BT, the Neptunes and Brian McKnight.
"It's a different level, but it's a little weird — they sound like they're angry on a lot of the songs," said 16-year-old Hadia Kabir of Thousand Oaks. "But the more I listen, the more it grows on me."
"It's got a better beat than No Strings — it makes you wanna get up and dance," 13-year-old Ashley Wroten of Los Angeles said.
But 8-year-old Kelsey Kinkle of Fresno, whose PopOdyssey T-shirt came down just below her knees, said she was too awestruck to dance while 'NSYNC were strutting around in chaps and riding mechanical bulls onstage. The experience was more than enough to hoist the group way above her other favorite boy band, the Backstreet Boys.
"I like 'NSYNC better now because they sing better and they look better," she said.
