Boston Herald Article

Here is an article from the Boston Herald from this past Sunday

Just sit right back and you’ll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip. Five passengers - in this case, New Kids on the Block’s Jordan, Jonathan, Joey, Danny and Donnie - set sail for a three-day tour, a three-day tour.

On Friday the quintet of heartthrobs returns to Massachusetts for a show at the Comcast Center. But a few weeks ago the New Kids were on the high seas rockin’ the boat with 2,100 fans on a Carnival Cruise Line jaunt in the Caribbean. For just over $1,000, fans got to be part of a seafaring kick-off to the New Kids’ second consecutive summer tour, a victory lap of sorts for the group who last year thrilled their fan base with their reunion and with a new album, “The Block,” their first new music in 14 years.

What could have been a madcap, “Hard Day’s Night”-esque 72 hours of dodging insane thirtysomething women - we’re picturing Donnie peering out of his hiding spot in the ship’s funnel - was actually a darn fine time for the Kids.

“We had our own quarters, but we spent a lot of time mingling with the fans,” Jordan Knight said from a tour stop in Scranton. “We did Q & As. We did this thing called NKOTB Feud, where the New Kids played fans in a ‘Family Feud’ kind of game. We met everybody on board and took a picture with everybody on board.”

Yes, everybody. While some passengers complained about a lack of access to the Kids, the event was so popular that a 2010 cruise is already planned.

Oh, and the group also did two shows.

Knight and crew quickly realized they were trapped at sea with the most diehard Kids nuts alive. So instead of waiting for stalkers to break into their suites at 3 a.m., the Kids came to the fans.

“We went on the offensive and started crashing other people’s rooms,” Knight said. “We had a competition of who could decorate their door the best with posters and memorabilia. We went around and picked doors we loved and banged on them to bring them room service.

“We went on the trip knowing it would be crazy,” he said. “We already had that in our heads. So we stepped it up even more and made it even crazier. We also had a pajama party. Donnie and I just went out on the deck one day and sang like half of our new album. It was a ball.”

The cruise came a year after the beloved Bostonians decided to get back together.

Legions of haters derided the comeback as the second coming of the lamest part of the ’80s, but it’s been huge. Even the new album was surprisingly un-terrible.

Knight had high hopes for the reunion, but the repsonse has been beyond his expectations. He figured the New Kids would do maybe 15 or 20 dates and call it quits. But their first North American run went so well a second leg was added. Then came a European tour and now this third U.S. lap.

How does a bunch of dudes remembered as much for their lunch boxes as their hit singles get a second career 20 years later?

“Our kind of entertainment is like a home-cooked meal,” Knight said. “I think people crave that. They go to college, they travel to Europe, but they eventually want to come home and have mommy’s cooking again. We also made an impression on people so young, that, well, you know how ducks, they uhhhh. . .”

Is it imprinting he’s thinking of?

“Exactly. It’s that first impression that’s so strong. Luckily we did it with a lot of care and tenderness, and feelings just don’t die. They just lay dormant. And then when you hear a song from whenever, it will take you right back to a specific time in your life.”

Especially if that specific time in your life involves New Kids dolls, sheets and lunch boxes. Or a midnight buffet and sighting of Joey Mac on the high seas.