If you were a young girl in 1997 or earlier, there is a good chance that you spent a decent portion of time fantasising about life as Nick Carter’s girlfriend or having the New Kids on the Block boys singing “Step By Step” especially for you; I know I did. Fast forward fifteen odd years and I find myself in a near packed out Adelaide Entertainment Centre, waiting to the boy band supergroup that is NKOTBSB (New Kids on the Block & Backstreet Boys ) take to the elaborate set up that was the stage. Johnny Ruffo , grand finalist in the 2011 season The X Factor and heartthrob to many Channel 7 viewers across the country, had scored the national support slot for this tour. I had no idea he’d branched into a singing career after his appearance on the talent show, but judging by the screams that followed his appearance tonight, I was clearly living under a rock. Ruffo’s set showed off his skills as a dancer and his take on many pop hits by artists including Usher and Bruno Mars . His love for Michael Jackson was exhibited through a medley of tracks and an impressive set of dance moves paying homage to the entertainer. Flanked by two dancers who didn’t really seem to do much for the stage show, Ruffo was in many ways, the perfect choice for show opener tonight. He knew how to work the crowd and even though his original songs didn’t stray far from the pop formula currently dominating the commercial charts at present, he knows how to work with what he has. I can’t explain the anticipation that began to build within the half an hour it took for the catwalk and stage to be reset. Heralding the main act was an introductory set of visuals projected on a massive screen, showing each member of both bands as the music began to speed up and intensify. It was like every – now grown up – female in the audience reverted back to the late 80s/90s versions of themselves within this time and, once the screen had dropped and it was realised that ‘Holy shit, New Kids and Backstreet Boys are actually on THE SAME STAGE’, the screaming was phenomenal. NKOTBSB opened with a mash-up of “Single” and “The One”, sampling Coldplay’s “Viva La Vida”, before an epic show which lasted about two hours and featured roughly 30 songs. I’d been interested to see how the show would be divided between the two bands and as it continued, it was evident that these performers had a routine akin to a well-oiled machine. Utilising the catwalk cleverly, when one band would finish a song, the lights would go out before the next band would appear already in position on the main area of the stage and so on. The dance moves that made both bands’ film clips so memorable were performed in fine form, pyrotechnics were blasting from different areas of the stage and the costume changes NKOTBSB underwent did well in harking back to some memorable (willingly and unwillingly) moments back in the heyday of their careers. For the people who’d paid the $820 for the full VIP package got their money’s worth, as members of both bands would proceed to venture into that area of the crowd to get up and close and serenade the swooning (call me bitter, I don’t care). Nick Carter in particular, seemed like he’d been studying old BSB film clips in preparation for tonight, looking and sounding the same as he did back then. Donnie Wahlberg , as always, brought the badass element to the NKOTB performances, earning screams with each strip down, showing off his rather impressive physique. It was amazing to realise how many lyrics I still remembered tonight, from NKOTB’s “Please Don’t Go Girl” to BSB’s “Shape of My Heart”, the range of songs featured tonight was fantastic. Hits including NKOTB’s “Step By Step”, “You Got It (The Right Stuff)” and “I’ll Be Loving You (Forever)” competed with BSB’s “All I Have To Give”, “As Long As You Love Me” and “I Want It That Way” in terms of crowd response and participation, culminating in an explosive finale featuring a mash-up of “Hanging Tough” and “Everybody (Backstreet’s Back)”. Confetti cannons showered the bands and crowd upon the end of the show and it was clear that for a lot of people this probably would have been the gig of the year. Yes, the bands were older and yes, the amount of crotch grabbing and thrusting bordered on slightly overdone, but it was undeniable that NKOTBSB are seasoned in the ways of bringing massive arena audiences completely undone. Understandable, considering how long both have been in the game for, but even now, more than a decade on, it was definitely a sight to see. With all the 90s bands crawling out of the woodwork, this was the one you’d wanted to be a part of the most; One Direction fans take note, these are the guys they’re modelled off.

Nate Dorough is a promoter from Michigan that runs  Fusion Shows , puts on  Bled Fest , and does work with  Phantom Creative Group  as well. It’s been a long time since we’ve had Nate on the site, but we’re stoked to have him back. In his new blog, Nate dives into phony “booking agencies” and how they, nine times out of ten, only hurt and take advantage of younger bands who might not know any better. It’s quite an interesting read for both general fans and musicians in young bands, so check it all out below! Here ...

Three months after the release of June 19’s “Believe,” Justin Bieber will hit the roads with a headlining arena tour. The first leg will open Sept. 29 at the Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Ariz. http://www.hitfix.com/blogs/the-beat-goes-on

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Altive Media and Eagle Rock Entertainment presents Kasabian Live! Live At The 02, an exclusive film of the Award-winning UK rock band, Kasabian, performing live from their sell-out ‘Velociraptor’ 2011 tour. Shot in state-of-the-art high-definition, the film includes unique footage of the band’s entire breathtaking live performance from London’s 02 Arena and will be shown at select cinemas nationwide at 8.30pm for one night only, on Wednesday 30th May 2012. To celebrate the film’s release, we have a signed tour poster and a pair of tickets for three lucky winner to attend the film’s screening ...

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It’s been a pleasure to watch Andrew Elstner make his way from the beginnings of his time in Riddle of Steel to hopping on with the rock juggernaut that is Torche and the creation of this here side project Tilts. I actually think Tilts was formed right before Elstner joined with Torche, which had me worried that all those rockers that I heard on the self-released EP’s would fall by wayside and never get the proper treatment they deserved. However, he has found a way to share the time between the two bands with ease.  Seeing the release ...

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Imagine being 5 years old and playing in front of 10,000 screaming Rammstein fans at a gigantic arena. That’s exactly what the Children Medieval Band — who you might remember from last month performing an adorable cover of Rammstein’s “Sonne” — did this past Sunday night at the Denver Coliseum. The YouTube video released by the [...]

Trophies were presented at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas [...]

blink-182 have added to intimate dates in July to their UK tour. Check out the full routing including the new dates below by clicking “Read More.” Related Stories: Tom DeLonge Diagnosed With Pneumonia; Shows Canceled Angels & Airwaves Cancel Tour Dates; Tom DeLonge Severely Sick blink-182 Cancel All North American Dates   Angels & Airwaves To Become More Active In 2013 June 7th Birmingham NIA* 8th London O2 Arena* 9th London O2 Arena^ 12th Dublin O2 Arena* 13th Belfast Odyssey Arena* 15th Manchester MEN Arena^ 16th Birmingham LG Arena^ 17th Sheffield Motorpoint Arena^ 19th Newcastle Metro Radio Arena^ 20th Glasgow SECC^ July 7th Bournemouth BIC> 10th Cardiff ...

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