At the boiling point

Rabid fans turn up the heat

Jeff Timmons doesn't see what all the fuss is about.

After all, it is just little ol' him up there onstage with a few pals singing some songs.

But to the thousands of hormonally-driven, screaming teenage girls who consistently show up at their mall appearances and sell out their tours, 98o are a God-send.

"It blows my mind that when we do an in-store in Winnipeg, there'll be 2,000 girls screaming their heads off," says the 25-year-old founding member of the popular vocal group.

"It's like, what's going on here? I couldn't get a date six months before we got a record deal."

While he has no trouble in that department anymore -- besides not being able to see his girlfriend (yes girls, shed a little tear, he's attached at the moment) -- the Utah native and ex-psychology student wishes some fans wouldn't give them so much attention.

"We've had some crazy experiences with fans who are obsessive," he says.

"There's one lady who's, like, 36, and she's really crazy about the group. She calls our manager and gets ahold of our families' numbers. She's called my mom telling her that she's a journalist and asks for baby pictures for a book she's writing.

"She's wacko. That gets pretty scary because my mom's had to change her phone number three times and she finds out every time."

Still, Timmons is happy with the relatively sane, if excitable, reception the four-piece group -- who perform tomorrow night at the MacEwan Hall Ballroom with guests Maestro and Joee -- receive wherever they go.

Even if he did find it odd that, after only one song, girls were tattooing the group's name to their bodies.

"It took me a long time to get a tattoo of 98o on my arm -- and I'm in the band," he says laughing.

It seems that 98o's music also has the power to heal if a Canadian fan's letter is true.

"This girl wrote into our fanclub and said her father was dying of cancer," he explains.

"She played an inspirational song from our first album called Hand in Hand, and he came out of his coma. That's a very touching story and that's what it's all about for us.... We like to write and sing songs and if we can help someone out of a coma then that's all the gratification we need."

Forming three and a half years ago in California, 98o -- who will be at the A-Channel's Big Breakfast studio answering questions during the station's Live @ 5 broadcast today -- were disappointed that their 1997 self-titled debut was lost in their label's transitional shuffle.

"The president of Motown and most of the staff were fired, so in the middle of our project, no one was there to (help push us)," says Timmons. "We thought we were going to be a one-hit wonder. It was frustrating because we were very happy with the first album, we felt very strongly about it."

Even now, Timmons admits their debut is his favourite album but says he's very pleased with their new CD, 98o and Rising, because the band had strong artistic control over it -- not to mention a guest appearance by Motown legend Stevie Wonder, who sang on True to Your Heart.

"To meet him, record a song with him and appear with him on television was a dream come true."