WESTLIFE : The Nostalgic Charm of Dying Boyband

I was watching TV earlier today with my roommate, we were flipping over the channels when something interesting came up – Westlife concert. It’s not an ordinary concert too; it’s their last tour before retiring. Needless to say I was about to piss my pants seeing those faces I fell in love head over heels years ago. We stayed up longer than we usually do only for the show, and when it began, it was … woah. I haven’t been listening to them for years, I don’t even remember their faces anymore, but I still can remember every word of their lyrics. 

 This is what late 90's boyboand look like

For you who don’t know, Westlife is (was?) a boyband from England. Think N*SYNC and Backstreet Boys, only with less squeal-inducing dance moves and way, WAY, more suits. They were not as internationally famous as N*SYNC or BSB though; they were mainly popular in Europe and Asia but never made it in USA. They rose to their peak of popularity in late 90’s, before one of their members quit and went solo. Their popularity has been declining since then; they made several comeback attempt but none are successful enough to catapult them back to what used to be their throne. The last time I heard of them was in 2010, I think.

Now, I’m not a fan of Westlife, but then again no one is. We are all former fan. I bet all those women crowding the arena also haven’t been listening to Westlife for quite a while, but they used to be one of those little girls singing to Flying Without Wings while fawning over Mark or Nicky, more than a decade ago. I remember N’SYNC, their comeback at the Grammy and how the now-huge celebrities like Lady Gaga and Katy Perry went crazy over them. I think that is the selling point of these senior, yet dying boybands; nostalgia. Their songs are no longer selling, they are also not as cute as they used to be, and better competition arose here and there, yet their shows will always be crowded.  It is because everyone wants to live off those years once again, when you are just a little girl and everything is so simple. It’s like time machine; it’s like having a nice date with a dear, forgotten part of your life. 

Mein gott. Please slap me for being so melancholic. 

But that is true; here I am watching them singing My Love, all the while mouthing the lyrics silently and mulling over my life and how different it was then and now. I bet all those girls crying also feel the same way.

It’s crazy how much things like this can affect you, really.