WINNIPEG - There's an oft-repeated bit of Scripture -- usually reserved for commencement addresses and weddings -- that speaks of putting away childish things once you become a man.
And while we certainly don't want to tell the Backstreet Boys how to do their jobs, the Florida foursome -- who brought their Unbreakable tour to MTS Centre last night -- might want to consider giving the passage a look-see.
Obviously, it's been some time since any of the Boys were really boys: Youngest member Nick Carter turns 29 in January, while eldest Howie Dorough just turned 35.
But the unfortunate name isn't the only holdover from their mid-'90s glory days, when slick dance moves and Swedish-penned pop tunes (oh, and the financial backing of America's biggest boy-band mogul) were all it took to reach the top of the charts.
They also find themselves locked in the same man-boy limbo where their music is concerned -- trying to make the leap into adult-contemporary territory, but still beholden to the former teeny-boppers who made them famous in the first place.
For now, anyway, they're doing their best to straddle the divide, and last night's show proved they're (mostly) pulling it off.
They certainly came out swinging -- literally, in fact -- clad in boxing gloves and capes, and shadowboxing to the strains of their monster hit Larger than Life (which had been mixed with one of the Rocky themes and a snippet of Kanye West's Stronger).
The routine was kind of goofy, but the song remains as catchy as ever, and the momentum helped carry them through the less hook-laden follow-ups Everyone and Any Other Way.
On You Can Let Go, they finally quit with the dancing for a while, letting A.J. McLean (the former bad boy) and Brian Littrell (still the good boy) trade some serious harmonies from opposite corners of the stage.
Say what you want about the boy-band craze, but some of these guys can really sing, and after 15 years together, the Backstreet Boys have an undeniable vocal chemistry.
Alas, the effect was short-lived -- they launched into one of those chair-dancing routines for Unmistakable -- and by the time the opening of I Want It That Way (still one of the better pop ballads on the books) rolled around, the mass sing-along from the audience nearly drowned out their contributions.
After a solo turn from Dorough (each member got one; the less said, the better), the Boys reassembled around a poker table to pantomime a card game and croon Show Me the Meaning of Being Lonely.
And it was here that they really hit their stride: No laboured hopping around, no mugging for the cameras or the ladies in the crowd, just four guys who've been singing together for years milking a sombre pop song for all the pathos they could.
The only problem?
They couldn't sit around the card table for the whole concert. That would've been boring, and besides, the fans paid to see them dance.
But it's worth pointing out the show's second-most impressive moment was also devoid of dance steps -- when all four huddled around a garbage can fire for a street corner version of All I Have to Give.
Something to think about, maybe, as they continue the transition from Boys to men.
Ironically, Canuck R&B diva Divine Brown managed to squeeze as much soul into her half-hour opening set as the Boys did their entire show, skipping nimbly from the girl-group vibe of Lay It On the Line to the bass-heavy disco groove of Boogie Slide and Jump Start.
