Asian Junkie Asian pop. Without discretion.
It hasn’t been the best time in New York these past few days, with the weather being pretty terrible and bringing intermittent rain. I was in the city for a business trip, so I figured why not check out ATEEZ while they’re in town? The group stopped by Brooklyn during its Towards The Light: Will To Power world tour, and I had a fun time despite the massive start delay and pouring rain.
Due to the rain and thunder, the concert was pushed back for two hours, now starting at 9:30 PM. Somehow, a fangirl’s prayers were answered, because when the announcer revealed the new start time, it was still raining, but it magically stopped at 9:25 PM.
ATEEZ came out with some very regal white costumes, starting with “Crazy Form,” Say My Name,” and “WIN.” One thing that I’ve noticed with guy K-pop groups, especially the super popular ones like ATEEZ, is that they’re not afraid to be extra and turn up the fanservice. That means a ton of body rolls and crotch shots, and honestly, I’m with the fangirls on this one. Who wouldn’t bark and shout after seeing San’s Dorito back?
It wasn’t until the second act opened up with “This World” and “Wake Up” that ATEEZ introduced themselves and apologized for the delay. As a result, the group had to adjust the setlist a bit. It seemed like there were fewer VCR transitions between songs for an average K-pop concert, but there were still some due to necessary costume changes.
One of my favorite aspects of the setlist was how seamlessly some of the solo and unit performances transitioned into upcoming songs, such as Wooyoung’s dance solo going into “Silver Light.” In fact, it was such a flawless switch that I didn’t even realize until halfway through the song that the whole group was once again performing.
But my favorite part of the setlist was the four-song gauntlet of, “Arriba,” “Django,” “Bouncy,” and “Wonderland.” Of course, the crowd was at the absolute loudest during “Bouncy” because of its infectious chorus, but what actually caught my eye was the fun use of stage props. During those four songs, the group utilized a southern bar saloon set up in the background, and even poured drinks for each other during the performances.
At the end of the setlist, the audience was anxiously waiting to see if ATEEZ would even come out to play an encore, given the show’s late start. Fortunately, they did and performed “Eternal Sunshine,“ “Fireworks“, ”The Real,” and “Utopia.”
According to other setlist info I could find of other stops during the tour, the encore was supposed to also include “Turbulence” and “Dreamy Day,” but Hongjoong actually came out and apologized, saying that they would close out the group’s encore a bit early.
It’s commendable that ATEEZ committed to almost performing the entire original setlist despite the less than ideal weather and start time. Even with only two songs being left out during the encore, the show still felt like a complete experience. Hopefully, I’ll catch ATEEZ’s next tour in better condition.
[📷] TODAY ATEEZ
— ATEEZ(에이티즈) (@ATEEZofficial) August 4, 2024
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ATEEZ 2024 WORLD TOUR [TOWARDS THE LIGHT : WILL TO POWER] IN NEW YORK
환상적인 퍼포먼스를 보여준 ATEEZ
그리고 폭발적인 반응을 더해준 ATINY
ATEEZ와 ATINY가 만나 완성한 최강의 시너지😎🔥#TowardsTheLight #Will_To_Power#TODAY_ATEEZ #ATEEZ #에이티즈 pic.twitter.com/UqHvGwyI0U
