Sydney Morning Herald

9 weeks: Baby One More Time, Britney Spears 1998; MMMBop, Hanson 1996; Macarena, Los Del Rio 1995; I Just Want To Be Your Everything, Andy Gibb 1977; Dancing Queen, Abba 1976; If You Leave Me Now, Chicago 1976; Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, The Platters 1959; Just Walkin in the Rain Johnny Ray 1956.

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Noisey

Olly Alexander has been on the periphery of fame for a while. When he was 18, he left the countryside of Wales and moved to London. In no time, he started racking up the acting credits. He appeared on “Skins,” one of the most watched teen dramas in the UK. He starred as Peter Pan, alongside Ben Whishaw and Judi Dench, in the West End play Peter and Alice. And, most recently, he held the leading in Stuart Murdoch’s film, God Help the Girl, which took home several awards at Sundance.

But Olly doesn’t want to talk about that. Instead, he’s here to talk about his band.  And while he can obviously act, he can really, really sing. The guy’s voice is so falsetto, it’s tough to tell whether he’s even a guy. (When I was playing the band’s latest release, a moody cover of “Breathe” by Blu Cantrell, my mom commented how nice “her” voice is. Needless to say, he has no trouble hitting those high notes.)

Years & Years’ debut album is still a year away, but for now, we’ll be listening to the intoxicating single, “Take Shelter,” on repeat. That, and lamenting the downfall of Blu Cantrell.

How old were you when you were in your first band?
When I was in secondary school, so 14 or 15, I was in a band with my friends George and Georgina, just the three of us singing with a guitar. It was just a cover band, and we’d to do TLC, Destiny’s Child, and Hanson. We sang “Mmmbop.”

Please tell me I can find these on YouTube.
No!

VH1

Remember when Tony Hawk was THE man? Or when Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sarah Michelle Gellar ran the world? Or that time you thought you had a shot at marrying Joshua Jackson? Looking back at Body By Milk’s Got Milk? campaign reminds us of our favorite characters and crushes that we may or may not admit to being obsessed with in the ’90s.

These ads were known for being witty, sexy, and actually, quite informative. They taught us that Hanson drank “MMMmilk” when writing songs other than “MMMbop.” In the ’90s, young LeAnn Rimes sung about broken hearts, but wouldn’t dare mention broken bones. Nick Carter and the Backstreet Boys can thank milk for allowing them to hit those high notes that made the ladies crazy.

Whether or not you kept a secret collection of these ads back in the day, looking at them now makes us thirsty for a blast from the past. Check out some of our favorites, above.

News Mail

Taylor Hanson performing at the Hanson brothers’ concert at Brisbane’s Tivoli on Tuesday night. Emily Prain

THE year is 1997.

I am screaming my nine-year-old lungs out while listening to the infamous Hanson song Mmmbop on a friend’s discman (no iPods in those days, kids).

I came home that day and asked my mum whether she thought Taylor or Zac Hanson would marry me (Isaac was a little bit too old for me at the time).

Like any other legendary mum of the Hanson era, she swiftly bought me their debut album, Middle of Nowhere which played in our household until it was scratched beyond repair.

I suspect she did this as some sort of consolation, knowing I’d probably never lay eyes on the trio, let alone marry one of them.

But 17 years later, that all changed.

That same awesome mum bought me two tickets to see the boys – now men – live at the Tivoli in Brisbane on Tuesday night – the first leg of their Anthem Tour in Australia.

And man, did I feel nine years old all over again.

While my dutiful brother wasn’t overly pleased at being one of few blokes at the gig, I did catch him mmmbop-ing away halfway through the song.

Growing up I’ve had many a conversation with people a bit older than me who say things like, “do you remember the song such and such used to sing”.

And when I returned a blank look, they’d immediately follow up with eye rolling, an exaggerated sigh, and “oh, they were before your time”.

When I was telling – or maybe boasting to – a colleague to tell her daughter that I was going to see my childhood crushes, my colleague gave me that same blank look and said that, being 17 herself, she would have no idea who Hanson were.

It was at that moment it dawned on me that her daughter wasn’t even alive when I was at the height of my epic, one-sided love affair with the American lads.

Hanson are to me what David Cassidy was to my mum, and probably what One Direction will be to teenage girls today, eventually.

We all have our childhood crushes but I think only the very lucky get to see them – even if it happens to be 17 years later.

I have only just recently returned from the three-day Splendour in the Grass festival at Byron Bay and I honestly have to say, the Hanson gig just about knocked it off its perch.

Big call, I know. But they played a great mix of their old songs – including my beloved Mmmbop – as well as less-known tracks off their later albums and the whole crowd was just buzzing the entire performance.

And I need to get this off my chest – I swear Taylor Hanson and I had a “moment” on Tuesday night.

Albeit it was very quick and was one he actually probably had with a girl behind me.

But I’m pretty tall so I’m going to claim it.