Lance Bass proves out of touch with 'Out of Sync'

By Christine Davis, Staff Writer

November 9, 2007 | 11 a.m.

There seems to be a resurgence of clean, family fun in the entertainment industry (i.e. two -- going on three -- "High School Musicals"). Former *NSYNC member Lance Bass joined the wholesome horde with his new autobiography, "Out of Sync."

In "Out of Sync," Lance Bass begins by openly speaking out about being gay. "I've known I was different ever since I was five years old. For one thing, I had what I guess you could call innocent crushes on boys," Bass says.

From there one, he talks about his happy childhood in Mississippi. He gets to into the retelling of his childhood that his writing is much like a child's, easily distracted and lacking depth. Unfortunately, Bass' style doesn't change much as he ages throughout his autobiography. Although, most of the time, Bass is able to keep his life in chronological order, "Out of Sync" is much like a conversation with a fourth grader suffering from ADD.

There are also more exclamation marks on the 192 pages of "Out of Sync" than should ever be used, ever. Although an exclamation point is the most reflection Lance Bass seems capable of, there are certain sections with "Out of Sync" when Bass is able to speak slightly more poignantly. One instance of this is when Bass expresses his complete devastation when Justin Timberlake decided to go solo and quit the band. “The fact that nobody wanted to talk things over told me that it was really the end. That truth penetrated my soul like a razor-sharp blade slicing directly through my heart,” says Bass.

Lance Bass refers to the band as family of some sort, and it is pitiful how surprised he was at the band’s breakup. At one point in "Out of Sync," he describes a stage that *NSYNC performed on, which slowly raised them higher and higher and then slowly lowered them back down. Bass likened the stage to a metaphor of the band’s rise to fame when, in reality, it would seem more appropriate if the stage dropped out from under the poor boys.

Furthermore, the closest "Out of Sync" gets to being “dirty pop” is when Lance mentions band mate Joey Fatone’s porn addiction. Bass does discuss his homosexual relationships, though he gives more thought to how the relationship was hidden and how it might affect his career than to being open about how the relationship affected his growth as an individual. Bass does, however, discuss coming out nationally and his surprise at how accepting everyone was.

Bass also compares *NSYNC to The Beatles on more than one occasion. He compares the crazy fan girls to Beatlemania, and he likens "On the Line" (his and Joey Fatone’s movie) to “Yellow Submarine.” He also discusses the downfall of Britney Spears, being financially taken advantage of by producer Lou Pearlman, appearing on Rosie O’Donnell’s talk show, his dislike of the term “boy band” and the numerous perks and drawbacks to being famous.

“In pop music,” Bass contemplates, “the hard fact of life is and always has been: out of sight, out of mind.” In the concluding chapter, Bass mentions what he and his ex-band mates are currently working on. From solo albums to "Dancing with the Stars" to Broadway, ex-*NSYNC members have obviously progressed past their boy band days, but Bass says that he hopes that there will be an *NSYNC reunion.

"Out of Sync" is only intended for those nostalgic for the Nineties or a simpler time of monkey bars and school girl crushes, as that is how Lance Bass expresses himself. He seems not to realize that most *NSYNC fans have aged since the band’s heyday and no longer need an exclamation point after “ecstatic” to know what the word means.

Although fans can be glad that Lance Bass has become in sync with his true self after escaping the confines of the band, most are probably slightly saddened that he will never express himself in the way that *NSYNC’s hit single "Girlfriend" does.

---