At the end of my sophomore year, my friend and I took a fateful trip to F.Y.E., a music and video store at Triangle Town Center. Both of us being huge rock and alternative fans, we of course decided to purchase *NSYNC's Greatest Hits for $2. We laughed our heads off in the car at how ridiculous the lyrics, production, and singing generally were.
One year later, I'm wearing an *NSYNC t-shirt as I type this review. I do not think they're the greatest band in the world, nor do I even think the majority of their songs are of any artistic merit at all. A lot of the time, the band is genuinely laughable. That's exactly why I love them. They are a perfect picture of what a boyband should be: over-the-top, cheesy, unnecessarily serious, dated, and unashamedly marketed at teenagers of the time.
I love listening to albums all the way through, and my experience of *NSYNC has been primarily defined by my journey through each of their releases. My thoughts while listening to Greatest Hits were mainly, "This band is hilarious." After listening to some of the songs on The Essential *NSYNC, my thoughts were, "This band is actually kind of good." The Essential, which is a more comprehensive look at the band's career, includes one of my all-time favorite a cappella tracks, "I Thought She Knew." I dare anyone to listen to that song and tell me the five aren't incredibly talented singers. At the same time, I dare anyone to listen to No Strings Attached's "Just Got Paid" and hold in their laughter. *NSYNC is, with all their faults and cheesiness, fun to listen to.
That's enough for me.
Favorite album: No Strings Attached, 2000
Favorite songs: "I Thought She Knew," "Just Got Paid," "Thinking of You (I Drive Myself Crazy)," "Selfish," "No Strings Attached"
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