Boys Like Girls

By Leslie Wills

Columbia recording artists, Boys Like Girls, came through Vegas in October, leaving behind a streak of hair wax and teenager tears in their wake.  Their pop popularity has skyrocketed the group to sales above 268,000 units, since their self-titled debut album dropped in August 2006, and their video for  "The Great Escape"  hit #1 on MTV’s TRL nine times.  Their thirteen to sixteen year old female fan base couldn't be happier with this success and has helped the group log more than 9 million profile views on their myspace page.
           
Before taking the stage at House of Blues in Mandalay Bay, the earth seemed to shake with anticipation, but no, that was just my eardrums bursting from the high pitched screams of adoring fans.  These kids were psyched!!  And I do mean kids.  Hundreds of teenyboppers in their ballet flats and bouffant hairstyles, crammed in as close to the stage as possible.  Some even stayed up late the night before, making signs on poster boards, saying things like,  "GIRLS LIKE BOYS TOO".   

Wearing the now trademark skinny jeans and side-swept hairdos, Boys Like Girls came to entertain.  And entertain they did.  All in all, it was an energy-packed good time.  But as I watched the electronically-aided performance, it reminded me of simpler times and how they are gone now.  Although, just like so many boy bands before them, the crowd was singing along to many of their songs and you could tell they were loving it.  They perform a choreography of sorts, as the singer/guitarist Martin Johnson, bassist Bryan Donahue, and guitarist Paul DiGiovanni, take turns getting up on a pedestal, looking out into the crowd, getting back off the pedestal, walking over and standing in front of drummer John Keefe, and turning back to the crowd with a few strategically placed hair flips and guitar bravados.  I watched in disturbed amazement, as one girl or boy after the other actually began to crowd surf.  Not only did this indicate that they neglected to read the sign at the entrance that says,  “Crowd Surfing Is Prohibited,”  but it also meant they thought they were at a Pantera show.  But the band played on.  They even managed to pull together what was, I'm sure, the highlight of many a young girl's night, when all three band members drew long pulls from their water bottles and simultaneously spit into the crowd.  You could tell this Boston-based band had done this before.  But don't let the Boston thing fool you.  These guys can turn a phrase in a way you would swear they were straight out of Orange County—and they do seem to have something to say.  They are aware of the median age of their fans and address issues that are age-relevant in their songs.  Their record is well-produced and would do well among a collection of others in the category of pop/rock, like Blink 182 or Avril Lavigne.  So, if you are into music that is upbeat, catchy, smooth around the edges, and slightly uninspired, this is the band for you.   SLV