Boy Story

These days, a surefire way to get Carter riled up is to mention the avalanche of tabloid press he received thanks to his recent rocky relationship with Paris Hilton and his DUI arrest in California earlier this year (he has pleaded not guilty...to the DUI, not to Hilton). ''If they're so interested in my life,'' he says, ''then I'm going to bring 'em into a portion of my life that they obviously haven't paid attention to before. Which is I'm a f---ing singer.''

We'll find out how much people care about Carter's professional doings when Never Gone is released — almost five years since their last studio album, Black & Blue. ''Sometimes that long of a break is the kiss of death,'' says Dorough. ''It's like out of sight, out of mind. But if we had tried squeezing out another record, it would've been oversaturation, because people were probably ready for us to go away. I'm sure there's people who wish that we were still gone.''

Despite the naysayers, the guys are hopeful that they still have a place in their once-preteen fans' hearts, if no longer on their bedroom walls. One of the group's favorite songs on the new record is ''I Still...,'' a straightforward midtempo love song that Littrell hopes will take on a special added meaning. ''I think it could be the fans saying it about us,'' he says, offering an a cappella rendition of the song: '''Who are you now?/Are you still the same or did you change somehow?... I still need you.' The first time I heard it, I thought, If the fans all over the world could write a song and dedicate it to us, I feel like they would write something like that. I think they would.'' He pauses. ''I hope they would. Please!''

THE ALBUM
''We've shifted into an alternative rock-pop-type sound'' on Never Gone, says McLean. With the title track co-written by Richardson in honor of his late father and another tune (''Just Want You to Know'') about a dead girlfriend, McLean says, ''There's some deep lyrical stuff on this album.''