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Never Gone - Backstreet Boys
Metascore
40 out of 100

Mixed or average reviews - based on 7 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 7
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 7
  3. Negative: 2 out of 7
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  1. All Music Guide
    60
    Never Gone [is] a solid adult contemporary album, which will please both BSB diehards and the dwindling ranks who wish that the glory days of Jon Secada never ended, but its relative strength does highlight one problem with the album: this kind of music doesn't sound quite as convincing when delivered by a group of guys as it does by one singer.
  2. Village Voice (Consumer Guide)
    50
    Lest you doubted it, this is grotesque.
  3. Entertainment Weekly
    50
    This corny comeback is hardly a triumphant return. [24 Jun 2005, p.165]
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  4. E! Online
    50
    Even if they aren't Never Gone, their inspiration certainly is.
  5. Blender
    40
    Never Gone's rock ballads are painfully and sometimes powerfully earnest demands for meaning and redemption. [Aug 2005, p.108]
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  6. Rolling Stone
    20
    The Backstreet men rarely accelerate beyond a mid-tempo thud. [16 Jun 2005, p.100]
    All this publication's reviews
  7. PopMatters
    20
    What stops the Backstreet Boys from being any fun is, I think, their inability/refusal to wink at their audience.
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User Reviews

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User Score
5.8 out of 10

Mixed or average reviews- based on 93 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 36 out of 57
  2. Mixed: 1 out of 57
  3. Negative: 20 out of 57
  1. TiffL
    7
    After taking a five year hiatus, the Backstreet Boys are back with a new album sounding a little older but wiser. Appropriately named, Never Gone, this album shows a lot of growth that the Backstreet boys have done. I saw appropriately named Never Gone because they might’ve been out of the spotlight for a while, they never completely gave up on music. And with this album, it’s a good thing they didn’t, we would be missing a great line up of songs. Being a group for more than 10 years, they had their struggles to get on top, and even on top they all had personal struggles. With this 5 year break, they finally got a break from being a band and got to do things they wanted to do and needed to do as individuals. But they couldn’t stay away from being a group and making music like they all love to do. Spending more than a year in the studio writing, producing, and recording songs for a new album . They spent time putting different sounds into their pop song to have a new variety of fans. Mixing a little more rock and also R & B but still kicking their original made sound that they are known for. As I mentioned before, the lyrics of this album are mature and deeper than previous albums. In past albums, they went for the rhyming factor which would turn to sound cheesy but catchy and it worked. This album and in the first single alone, you see the growing that the members have done lyrically and vocally. In “Incomplete” the lyrics used are “...Empty spaces fill me up with holes, distant faces with no place to go. Without you within me I can find no rest..” You can deel the pain that they are expressing a lot more deeper. Which makes the ballads on this album some of their best. Also, for their this album they focus more on ballads and to show off their vocal abilities because they are know for their great harmonies and pure talent. And they have a few mid-tempo songs that have great lyrics, such as “I Still..” and “Climbing the Walls”. They are lyrically better written they their other hits, like “As Long As You Love Me” and “Quit Playin’ Games”, but they are bigger hits because they are really catchy and that’s what radio and people go for. The new album has catchy song but not as catchy. If you were a die heart fan of the Backstreet Boys before you will noticed the maturity in the music and will like the change. But if you didn’t really followed their you might not like it as much, going into thinking it’s going to sound like the typical pop boy band. There is something missing in this album, and that’s a real big hit like “I Want It That Way” or even “Shape of My Heart”. The whole album is good but nothing big for radio. It’s really seems to be missing that one song that people go out and buy the album for. But if you are looking to hear great ballads and an occasional upbeat song, I’d recommend Never Gone for you.… Full Review »
  2. KRSONMar
    9
    I've listened to all of the Backstreet Boys albums,and this one is possibly their best,depending on how one views Millenium.Their sound here is more mature but still melodic and pleasant,rather than the heavily-electronic dance music their most recent two albums have been.They've clearly shed their poppy roots and are embracing adulthood here,but while I found the tone of it somewhat unsure of itself,it wasn't ever **** or trying too hard to prove itself.The Boys teamed up with popular adult contemporary composers and artists they admired,like Darren Hayes from Savage Garden and one of the members of Train,to create a more adult contemporary style that embraced a very different set of sounds than their previous albums;whereas their previous releases had had a fair amount of electronic melodies mixed in with some light acoustic sounds,this one went almost entirely acoustic,and the new palette of sounds is refreshing.The Backstreet Boys always had the advantage over their competition in that they could actually sing,and this album allows them to show that,instead of their vocal talents takiing second fiddle to hooks and catchy choruses.The subject matter is also more mature this time around;now,instead of singing about teenage love,they sing about the world post-September 11th and a Poster Girl who likes to hook up in elevators in front of the security cameras.Overall,this was a mature effort by the band,who had outgrown their poppy days,but more recently have returned,unfortunately,to meaningless lyrics and studio editing instead of relying on their actual talent.… Full Review »
  3. MichelleM.
    10
    The Backstreet Boys are the best. Their cd, Never Gone ruled!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I will always be a BSB fan.
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