Son of a bitch! This is so uncalled for. Return of the Backstreet Boys:

Backstreet's back, all right! The Backstreet Boys whose hits such as "Everybody" and "As Long As You Love Me" catapulted them into popster superstardom in the '90s, are ready to stage a comeback.

The megaselling quintet announced plans to play a string of U.S. club dates starting Mar. 21 in New York in preparation for the release of their as-yet untitled upcoming studio album in July--their first album since 2000's Black and Blue.

Just the other day, I thought to myself, "Wow, it sure is nice that both 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys have both gone far away." What more could they possibly have to offer the world? I remember when I was across the pond back in 1997 courtesy of the Monroe Scholar summer research grant, a.k.a. Let's Go Europe!, and I saw in the stores of London loads of merchandise for the Backstreet Boys. This was before they hit it big back home, but I knew that it was only a matter of time before their skeevy faces would be all over American television. And so I rejoiced when they eventually went away and took their syrupy music and assorted facial hair with them. But I guess that boy bands are just the herpes of the music world.

Also today, it was announced that Alanis Morissette will release an acoustic version of "Jagged Little Pill" to mark it's ten year anniversary, thus insuring the continued misapplication of the term "ironic." Oh, and this aspect of the story is just rich:

[The album] will initially be sold only at Starbucks' 4,500 North American outlets for a six-week exclusive period, after which it will hit traditional retail outlets on July 26.

Nothing says grrrl power like Starbucks.

What's next? A Creed reunion down at the local Chipotle? Shudder the thought.