Very Important Breaking 'N SYNC News

Did you hear about that new 'N SYNC album that got released on Tuesday, July 29? No? Well, don't worry. Neither did 'N SYNC. Children of the '90s will remember 'N SYNC as that boy band that they either lorded over Backstreet Boys' fans as the superior band or scoffed derisively at for not being the Backstreet Boys. You were either an 'N SYNC fan or a Backstreet Boys fan in the '90s. There was no middle ground. Other bands did not exist. Justin Timberlake or Nick Carter was the defining question of all your friendships. It was a dark and brutal time. Now it appears that 'N SYNC has a new album out that received no promotion or fanfare, probably because all of the people who used to walk around with 'N SYNC on their backpacks are now too old to look back on those days with anything but shame, but apparently this album release was even kept secret from the band.

'N SYNC might not still be a band, but that's still pretty bad. The album, a two-disc offering called Essential 'N SYNC, features 34 of 'N SYNC's greatest hits and obscure tracks that you might not know all the words to. It's essentially a new album with old music, but that still doesn't really explain why there was no promotion done for it. Did they think that grown up '90s kids wouldn't buy this album for the memories? Do they know '90s kids at all?

It was Lance Bass who revealed that the record label hadn't even shared the news of the album with the band. On Monday, he tweeted a screencap of the Amazon page for the album.

You're right, Lance Bass. They care. They care a lot. They care about giving us all a heart attack thinking that 'N SYNC was pulling a Beyoncé and releasing a super secret album that I myself would launch to No. 1 on iTunes by buying several thousand copies of. They care that they gave us dreams of a reunion tour, of campy music videos hopefully better than the one that went with O-Town's "Skydive," of Justin Timberlake and that godawful perm. Now, not only have those dreams been dashed but I already own most of these songs and I already know all of them.

Of course, I find it hard to be bitter when there's now a single two-disc CD that I can own that will encapsulate my '90s childhood. Essential 'N SYNC is far from a waste of money, even if it was misleading to say that 'N SYNC has a new album out. If you ever wanted an excuse to start playing "God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You" or "It's Gonna Be Me" on repeat, then this definitely qualifies.

Check out the track list below.

Disc 1 1. Here We Go (Radio Cut)2. I Want You Back (Radio Edit)3. Tearin' up My Heart (Original Radio Edit)4. God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You (Remix)5. Thinking of You (I Drive Myself Crazy) 6. For the Girl Who Has Everything (Radio Mix)7. Are You Gonna Be There 8. Music of My Heart 9. Bye Bye Bye 10. It's Gonna Be Me 11. This I Promise You (Radio Edit)12. I Thought She Knew13. I Believe in You 14. If I'm Not the One 15. Pop (Radio Version)16. Girlfriend (The Neptunes Remix)17. Gone (Album Version)

Disc 2 1. More Than a Feeling 2. Best of My Life 3. The Lion Sleeps Tonight4. Sailing5. Everything I Own6. God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You 7. Somewhere, Someday 8. Trashin' the Camp 9. If Only in Heaven's Eyes 10. You Don't Have to Be Alone 11. On the Line12. That Girl (Will Never Be Mine)13. Falling 14. Feel the Love 15. Selfish 16. See Right Through You 17. Believe in Yourself (TV Version - Sesame Street)

Image: n-sync/Tumblr