Arizona Republic - Beyond Backstreet

By: Larry Rodgers

The jump from teenybopper phenomenon to mature solo artist can be a precarious one,as the checkered latter-day careers of artists such as David Cassidy,Tiffany and New Kids on the Block show.

But Nick Carter of the on-hiatus Backstreet Boys,who has been on a solo flight since last fall,isn't intimidated by the struggles of earlier stars or by the huge solo success of a current competitor,Justin Timberlake of Nsync.

"I'm not afraid to take chances.I'm not afraid to fall on my face...I'm not afraid to lose," says Carter, who helped craft a Backstreet sound that sold 36 million albums.

Altough sales of his rock flavored solo debut, Now or Never, are lagging far behind those of Timberlake's hi-hopping Justified, Carter says," It's a lot of fun to be able to go out there {alone} and go wild, because that's the kind of person I am."

Carter, 23, the youngest member of a "boy band"now delving into marriage and parenthood-also says he relishes playing cozy venues,such as Phoenix's Alice Cooper'sTown,as Timberlake readies a tour of major arenas with pop queen-turned-nasty girl Christina Aguilera.

"It was my idea to go do these smaller places," says Carter, who will perform for about 1,000 fans in Phoenix on Wednesday." I wanted it to be intimate for the fans because I've been so lucky to perform at big places{with Backstreet},but when you play those big places,you tend to lose that closeness."

However,at this point there's no way Carter could fill America West Arena, where Timberlake and Aguilera will open their tour June 4. Timberlake has scored big radio play with a string of urban-flavored singles, while Carter has rated lackluster reaction to I Got You, the lone single released since Now or Never's October launch.

But the Florida-based Carter says he isn't losing any sleep over comparisons to Timberlake.

Carter,who calls Timberlake's album "great music", contends that the Nsync singer had more of the spotlight in that group, helping him to quickly break into the solo arena.

Maintaining that Backstreet "is defined as a group, a team thing," Carter adds: "It's not like I'm trying to be the front man in that group," -even though he clearly was a fan favorite, often drwaing the loudest screams during Backstreet's Phoenix shows.

A programmer at Valley urban-radio power house KZZP-FM {104.7}, known as KISS, has a somewhat different take. He says Timberlake's affiliation with Nsync indeed has been an asset, while the decline of the longer-running Backstreet Boys resulted in less buzz for Carter.

"You couldn't deny the fact that Nick Carter was a superstar "in Backstreet Boys," says Tom Principale, assistant program director of KISS."But if you're going out on your own, it really has to be something special to get the recognition of listeners and program directors."

KISS initially played Carter's I Got You,a midtempo rocker showcasing his luscious vocals, but Principale says requests for that single have fallen while Timberlake is lighting up the stations request lines with the remix of his hit Cry Me A River with red-hot rapper 50 Cent.

Carter's struggle for airplay may be due to what a purchaser for Virgin Megastore calls the bubble-gum backlash. "Once you've been known as a teeny bopper thing, it's hard to get credibility," says Tim Nielson,who coordinates the rock and pop inventory at Virgin's Arizona Mills outlet.

Carter continued working with Backstreet co-writer and producer Max Martin on Now or Never,while Timberlake enlisted top hip-hop producers,such as Timbaland and the Neptunes,to sharpen his sound.

Carter is also moving in a different direction.A few songs on Now or Never,including the piano ballads Do I Have To Cry For You and Heart Without A Home, might qualify for the next Backstreet album {which could be in the works as early as this month or next, according to Carter}.

"I was trying to keep some of it the same so I didn't freak the fans out too much," he says.

But much of Carter's solo music runs closer to the '80's rock of Journey and Bryan Adams, and he sounds most enthusiastic about the work that lets him stretch beyond Backstreet. "I was kind of experimenting," Carter says. "I was a big fan of Journey...They did pop songs but with live music.I wanted to bring some of that feeling back."

"When I went into the studio, I tried to create songs that were anthems, like Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer. Bryan Adams had a lot of anthemish choruses on his songs, like Def Leppard and Journey."

Both the album and the opener, Help Me, and another guitar track, I Stand For You, echo the upbeat rock of Adams, who recorded hits such as Cuts Like A Knife and Run To You. Carter adds some record scratching to I Stand For You to update it's sound. Girls in the USA has a rapping intro by Mr.Vegas, but turns into a rocker that echoes the light metal of Motley Crue.

Carter co-wrote five of the album's 12 songs, including Girls in the USA and I Stand For You, but he sees this work as just a first step.

"Everything's a learning process for me.I have to start now to get where I want to be in the future as an artist."

Guiding Carter thtough his solo debut was Martin, who wrote or co-wrote such Backstreet hits as I Want It That Way and Quit Playing Games {With My Heart}.Intrestingly, Martin also wrote hits with Adams and Bon Jovi. "It was an honor to work with him because of all the succes he's had with everybody," says Carter,whose album notes say that the Swiss-born Martin is "like a brother and a father to me."

Carter says that both he and Martin were ready to move past slick pop to "more of an organic,live type of music."

Despite that new direction,Carter,wjo plays guitar on a handful of songs in concert,says he's performing at least three Backstreet tunes - Quit Playing Games, I Want It That Way and Shape of My Heart. "It's a weird combination,but that's what's cool,"he says."I'm not afraid to take that chance and mix different music together."

"That's how people are nowadays. You look inot their CD case and it's not like they have all R&B in there. They've got rock, hip-hop, pop, country."

Carter and those marketing his new sound seem hopeful that the diverse tastes of record buyers will allow the singer to sustain a solo career.

"People grow up,"says Mary Papenhausen,a Phoenix sales represenative for Now or Never distributor BMG.

"As {Carter} matures, his style is probably going to mature with him."

Thanks to Phire.