New Kids Prove They're A Chip Off The Old Block
Tribune photo by CHRIS URSO
The New Kids On The Block performed at the St. Pete Times Forum Sunday night.
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Published: November 3, 2008
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TAMPA - The New Kids On The Block brought the right stuff Sunday when they performed at the St. Pete Times Forum.
Bandmates Donnie Wahlberg, brothers Jonathan and Jordan Knight, Joey McIntyre and Danny Wood brought the Forum to its feet when they emerged from beneath the stage amid plumes of smoke, wearing dress pants, button-down shirts and vests.
They started things off with "Single" from "The Block," their first new album in 14 years. They immediately took it back to their heyday with "My Favorite Girl" and "Right Stuff," complete with choreographed moves, albeit sometimes cheesy, all while the crowd stood and sang along word for word. For "Grown Man," also on their new album, they turned up the heat with lots of gyrating and pelvic thrusts.
There were numerous times they stopped the music and spoke to the crowd, which basked in the love. The more screams, the more the guys chatted. At one point they had the crowd hold a dance-off contest on camera.
Joey and Jordan were the vocal standouts, with Jordan hitting notes that would make Mariah Carey proud. Antics and bravado go to Donnie, who wore a Boston Red Sox baseball cap (he did give props to the Tampa Bay Rays, which caused more screaming, of course). Danny did some impromptu breakdancing and Jonathan still looked like the kid brother.
The guys shook things up when they showed up on a rotating stage with a piano opposite the main stage to perform "Two in the Morning" and "Dirty Dancing."
Opening acts included Natasha Bedingfield and newcomer Lady Gaga. Bedingfield performed "Pocketful of Sunshine," "Unwritten," the theme song from MTV's reality series "The Hills," and her latest single, "Angel." Although not a U.S. citizen, Bedingfield reminded the crowd to vote on Tuesday in the presidential election.
Minus a few dancing missteps early in the show, the boys from the "Block" held their own, and actually looked like they were having fun. If they weren't, ticketholders did.
Reporter Sarah Hoye can be reached at (813) 259-7832.
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