Sometime near the end of the first night of TOMORROW X TOGETHER's ACT: SWEET MIRAGE tour, the five-member group took to the stage to perform the song 'Blue Spring', a brand new song that the group wrote with their fans (also known as MOA) in mind. The crowd hushed, and even those who wished to sing along to the lyrics on screen did so with a kind of reverence that suggested the thousands in attendance understood the depth of sincerity of the song even before the group explained it fully afterwards. It was but one of several moments of closeness that came up during the concert, that pulled together both artist and fan in New York's Belmont Park into these moments of quiet and earnest connection.
To those that are familiar with Yeonjun, Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun and Hueningkai, it should not come as a surprise that they pulled out such intimate and soulful stages on their biggest tour to date. Since their debut, the group have been known for pairing some of the most searingly sad and introspective lyrics with massive, concert-ready beats and big pop bops. Songs such as 'We Lost the Summer', 'Drama' and more graced the stage to full aplomb, whilst some of the group's biggest hits like 'Blue Hour', '0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You)' and 'LO$ER=LO♡ER' had fans singing at the top of their lungs. To say other popular upbeat B-Sides such as 'Magic', 'Tinnitus' and 'Ice Cream' got people on their feet dancing would really be incorrect, as fans were actually on their feet throughout the entire concert bopping and waving from beginning to end.
The fivesome are now very adept at working a big crowd, getting MOA to join in with dances and lightstick waving, and this more than paid off due to the incredible energy that could be felt throughout the entire concert. Yet for all the dazzling choreography and chant-able upbeat choruses, the ability of the group to balance out such bombast with so many moments of tenderness and intricate beauty raised the level of what was already expected to be a great concert to a fantastic one.
Member Hueningkai had a solo dance stage which managed to capture the magic the group established their The Dream Chapter trilogy of albums and a dance opening before the song 'Opening Sequence' saw Yeonjun, as well as the duos of Soobin and Beomgyu, and Hueningkai and Taehyun swiftly capture the emotional energy of the song in a way that cannot be experienced from merely listening to the studio version. Ballads such as 'Anti-Romantic' and 'Farewell Neverland' were given the space to resonate with the crowd as the members took a pause from their dancing to allow their vocal colours to shine, as well as to draw attention to the beautiful and detailed magical atmosphere created by the production team via the various backdrops and occasional pieces of set dressing.
Many will be familiar with TXT's fansong 'MOA Diary (Dubaddu Wari Wari)' which was the closing song from the group's previous tour ACT: BOY and is the fansong the group released on 2021's The Chaos Chapter: FIGHT OR ESCAPE. This time round, the group said a fond farewell to the crowd with 'Our Summer', a truly OG track hailing from the group's debut album in 2019, and a song that is upbeat as it is gentle, as bright as it is melancholic, as joyful as it is longing. Perhaps, then, there was no better song to sum up the triumphs to be found in TOMORROW X TOGETHER's ACT: SWEET MIRAGE: for their artistic sincerity and musical complexity was showcased across the entire night and boy, did the New York crowd more than love it.
