When the Backstreet Boys first visited Toronto back in January, they played to a crowd of a couple of thousand at a downtown club. This time around, they were performing at Maple Leaf Gardens, to a very loud, very excited, capacity crowd. However, it did seem that the majority of people attending, waited until the last minute to buy their tickets. Even the day before the concert, there were still a lot of tickets left.

I was really unsure what to expect of the night, but I was ready to have fun! It was nearly impossible getting to the venue before the concert (and we were there an hour early). The roads were jammed with a multitude of vehicles all of them heading toward the same place. When we got out of the car we realized that there were a surprising number of smaller children there, which I didn't expect. Believe me, those little girls can make some noise!!!

I suppose the thrill of the BSB experience started about 30 minutes before the concert was scheduled to begin. Our seats were located right beside the stage in row B. From where we were sitting, we had a really good view of the entire stage area (including the curtains leading to backstage). From the very beginning everyone had their eyes wide open, hoping to catch a glimpse of one of the boys. Little did they know that AJ was getting curious and peeking out from behind the curtain. We were the only ones that noticed so we waved at him and he waved back and gave us the peace sign.

When the show finally did begin, 30 minutes late, the crowd was going absolutely insane with excitement. They all came out wearing different colored overalls, introduced themselves and thanked the crowd for their support. Then they gave us a taste of one of their songs on their second album. It was extremely difficult to hear due to all the noise, but it did sound good.

What followed was the boys doing interpretations of other artists' songs. Something which I did not expect, but thoroughly enjoyed, was Kevin and Nick playing the piano and drums together while singing one of their songs from their next album. It was called 10 000 Promises I believe. It's not really a ballad and it doesn't really have a fast rythm. To be perfectly honest, it's not what you're used to hearing from them. The crowd really went insane when they started performing the songs we all know, starting with I Wanna Be With You. From that point on it was a mad party in there with the boys playing up to the crowd--waving, showing a little skin, and basically just everyone having a lot of fun.

A song which everyone seemed to really enjoy was I'd Go Anywhere For You which is really foreign to us, since it was not included in the CD release in Canada. However, everyone was singing along by the end. Judging by the crowd's response that song will be a big hit in Toronto. The night ended with the boys changing into Maple Leaf hockey jerseys, and coming out to sing Quit Playing Games (With My Heart). Before they left, they promised they'd be back this summer!

I really found them to be genuinely nice people, they did not show an ovegrown ego, but rather they thanked the crowd endlessly all night long and we in turn showed our support by screaming as loud as possible. Overall it was a good concert, with great performances from all of the boys. Rest assured, that their next concert will be a sell out too!