These past couple of weeks has been quite an exciting time for Kpop fans. The previous week saw SHINee, Red Velvet, and Eddy Kim in town, and last week was VIXX and Kim Jong Kook turn to take the stage. We were really anticipating VIXX’s concert, because the concept-dols became well-known for their intense, themed music videos. It’s not your usual ‘boy falls in love with girl’ kind of love themed concepts; VIXX’s themes are the whole package. Combining stylized theatrics and musical theatre, VIXX has been through the cyborg phase, a reinterpretation of Jekyll and Hyde, tons of Greek mythology references, and even took a stab at being voodoo practitioners.
Source: ssym.weebly.com
Concept-dols is not something you see very often onstage, partly because they are more common in Japan than in Korea, but also because it can be hard to pull off. But VIXX has managed to meld the concept into their sound, which really makes them stand out in a sea of redundant pop peppering the entire Kpop industry. VIXX, a six-piece boyband consisting of members N, Ravi, Hongbin, Ken, Hyuk and Leo has just returned to Singapore after one and a half years, and it was like they weren’t even gone. Their latest album, Shangri-La, gravitates towards a more fusion style, where they used East Asian influences like traditional strings in their title track, Shangri-La.
VIXX at their open press conference just before their Shangri La concert
While we weren’t so sure about VIXX and their choice of outfits which made them look like gigolos, their energy was more than enough to make up for the lack of fancy outfits and over-the-top get-ups. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, it’s time to revisit VIXX’s music videos and first few stages where each of their MVs are themed. While it would have been cool to watch how they could have transferred those darker concepts from their music videos onto the stage, VIXX could certainly hold their own on the stage with their perfectly synced moves. VIXX even pulled off a fan dance inspired by Asian traditional dances, and there was none of that ‘cultural appropriation’ complaints from petty fans. Fans were also treated to a live rendition of newer songs like Black Out and Hot Enough, and Leo and Ravi even performed a little bit of ‘Whisper’, a track from their duo album.
source: KAvenyou
Interestingly, while fans loved all of VIXX’s newest songs, it was their older songs that really got the butts off the chairs in excitement. Keeping the best for the last, VIXX finished off with some of their older songs that made them famous. ‘Chained Up’, ‘On and On’, and ‘Error’ probably got the loudest cheers, with fans risking the wrath of security to record a bit of the song for their own memories. It wasn’t also just a concert where the singers just powered through all their songs just so that they can get it over and done with. VIXX also took the time to greet their fans, and even had fans fill a notice board with post-its with questions on them, which the boys promptly answered. Or answered as best as they could, since half of the requests were for the boys to perform girl group dances.
N being N
Our favourite moment had to be when a fan requested for leader N to give a backhug to each of the other members and say something nice to them. As close as the boys are, it’s clear that they are not a fan of skinship! N adorably rants, “I don’t really want to do this. I hate myself for doing this” as he sets his first target on Leo, thanking him for being a good roommate. Whilst he was occupied, the rest of the members set about drenching themselves in water just to make this all the harder for N. In case you needed to know, N thanked Lee Hongbin for touring the city with him (cue: cries from fans who harbour dreams of bumping into their idols in the streets), told Ravi that he was really glad and happy that he was by N’s side and to smile more. Hongbin finished off by saying, “the backhug just made the whole mood so down”, even though all the fans and N were secretly loving it. Sadly, instead of going for another round of hugs, VIXX finished off with ‘Good Night And Good Morning’. Other cute moments included when the boys danced to Sunmi’s ‘Gashina’, and when Leo actually conceded for a dance with Ken.
Ken internallising his regret
We’ll finish with a question that all fans have on their minds: what’s the one word that the members think best describes themselves?
Ravi: Passion
Hongbin: Fun
N: Starlight
Ken: Chameleon
Hyuk: Young and youth
Leo: Age
It was two and a half of hours of VIXX, and it was certainly more than enough for the fans, with plenty of music and laughs to go around. Props to the live translator who was translating everything in real time so we could all really understand what was going on stage instead of awkwardly laughing (we’re not that fluent in Korean too). Till next time, and enjoy your three bottles of kaya jam, Ken. With every single singer who falls in love with chilli crab, chicken rice, and laksa, it’s really refreshing to see someone finally say something different.
Header image taken from KAvenyou
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