Hey! Hallie here!
I’m one of the crazy people who not only stayed up all night to watch the first day of this Muster, but I’m also planning to do it again for the second day. You’ll see the post on the second day really soon here, but today I’m going to be talking about the first day of Sowoozoo. There are a lot of rumored changes between the set list of the first and second concert days, so there’s no telling as of now what differences my sister will be discussing in our next post on this Muster. But there were already so many surprises that I found myself screaming in excitement at parts. So let’s get into this!
Concept:
This concept reminded me a bit of Magic Shop. It started out with a vehicle moving around the stage with the members inside to transport them to center stage. This was seriously reminiscent of the Magic Shop rising out of the floor for the first song during the 5th Muster. Similarly, there were skits in between a few of the songs and videos during costume changes that told the story of Sowoozoo. While I really enjoyed the Sci-Fi, RV-like vehicle moving around the stage, I didn’t feel this story was as well thought-out as some of their other concepts. In videos we see that BTS are searching for something inside the bus, each member with a job to help them navigate the wasteland they’re driving through. It’s fun to see them interact in this fictional scenario, but it feels aimless. About halfway through the story the vehicle goes on red alert, promising a direction for the story. But it turns out it’s just a flat tire. The narrative makes a bit of a big deal about Jin, Jungkook, and Namjoon exciting the vehicle to change the tire. They have to put on what are basically hazmat suits to even exit it. But I couldn’t really get past the hilarity behind the fact that the only conflict introduced was a flat tire. The skits in between songs felt similarly aimless. They used a fictional technology to connect to ARMY and their memories, but none of the memories they discussed connected very well. I could watch the members talk about their past and their passions all day, but I couldn’t really get behind these skits as parts of an overall story. I still love when they go for a more whimsical concept for their concerts, though. I enjoyed this concept, but it didn’t quite reach the level of Magic Shop.
First Songs:
They opened up with “Life Goes On” which they performed inside of the vehicle. I love seeing smaller sets like this, especially when they can move around the stage. I also loved seeing their new looks during this first song. Namjoon’s new hairstyle is amazing. I wasn’t completely sold by the Neapolitan look he had before this concert, but I love his yellow color with the shaved sides. I think this might be one of my favorite Namjoon hairstyles in a while. And let’s not forget that these men were wearing lots of short sleeves, meaning we got to see how buff Namjoon has been getting. Speaking of short sleeves, Jungkook blew everyone away with his confidence in showing off his new sleeve. His tattoos suit him very well and I’m so glad he’s incorporating them into his performance looks. Jin has kept his hair pretty natural recently, but the lighter brown is gorgeous on him. Yoongi went blonde. Which is insane because he also keeps to his natural colors fairly often. The color, plus the longer length swept back, has understandably drawn a lot of attention. Hoseok went back to the bleached blonde color. I loved this color on him in the first place, but the teal color of his mic and ear pieces made it stand out even more. Jimin’s hair is black now, which is a result of his hair becoming very unhealthy after several drastic dye jobs in a row. I know he didn’t exactly pick this color, but I do really like his black hair. Lastly we have Taehyung. I wasn’t sure about his perm when he first revealed it, but it’s definitely growing on me. It’s cute and that’s just what Tae was going for.
After “Life Goes On” we hopped right into “Butter”. We’ve seen a lot of “Butter” recently, but it never does get old. And with the yellow and white color scheme for the costumes, it was very fitting. After this we saw the tropical remix for “Dynamite”. There was a very colorful, summery feel to the planetary set on the stage, and the tropical remix only intensified this aesthetic. Then we heard “Moving On” which is something we haven’t heard in a while. They pulled out this song to address quarantine and the message was comforting. Following this was “Stay” and “Fly to My Room”. The members split up for these songs. Jin, Namjoon, and Jungkook spent a bit more time playing around the stage for “Stay” while Taehyung, Jimin, Hoseok, and Yoongi used a bedroom set for their performance.
Mid-Concert Songs:
After a brief intermission we came back to the set for “Daechwita”. The group I was watching the concert with was so excited by just the set, we were already screaming the moment we saw it. But what followed was even more exciting. Yoongi played the role of the mad king, sitting on his throne while the other members of BTS filled other roles from the music video and joined his performance of the song. Jimin played the role of the modern Agust D, opening up the song with the first few lines. He doesn’t rap often, but his sweet tones were uniquely enjoyable. After this Jin and Jungkook arrived, playing the fighting men they portrayed in the original music video. Jin and his facial hair were excellent, as he also doesn’t rap. Jungkook really showed off his skill here. He doesn’t rap often anymore but he still has the skill for it. Next Namjoon appeared as the executioner preparing to execute Taehyung. Namjoon killed it, as always, but Taehyung’s fake facial hair and his hilarious “death” stole the show. Taehyung thoroughly enjoyed his own verse before Hoseok stepped up as the scroll keeper. Hoseok received the most difficult part of the song and I nearly stood up at how incredible he was. Yoongi, of course, ended the song with his usual impressiveness. This was the highlight of the concert for me.
It didn’t feel like they could match the energy “Daechwita” served, but “IDOL” was used excellently to keep up the energy. After this we got our first ever performance of “Dis-ease”! This performance was done among the live footage of ARMYs being projected where the audience would be. They also used pre-recorded ARMY singing to give the performance more of a concert feel. It was bitter-sweet to see the members perform next to ARMY without actually being able to interact with them. “Fire” followed to bring up the energy once more, and “So What” and “Not Today” were used to give the members time to enjoy the stage.
Encore:
The encore was pretty short here, but it was just as beautiful as it usually is. It started with “Wishing on a Star” which is another song we haven’t heard in a while. The members came out in concert shirts and more comfortable outfits, as they usually do, but I really do like to see them allowed to be a bit looser for the last part of the concert. Following this song were some of the most heartfelt songs BTS has performed for ARMY. One is “A Supplementary Story: You Never Walk Alone”. Around this time they also talked a bit about how strange it is that they’ve reached their 8th anniversary (Hoseok also reminded the audience that it wasn’t the birthday of the the bugs attacking them while they were standing on stage). They closed the concert out with “Mikrokosmos”. I don’t feel there will ever be a more perfect closing song than “Mikrokosmos”. It’s gorgeous and gives a nice nostalgic feeling to leave the concert with. The fireworks were a bit crazy as they left stage, which caused Jin to cough a few times through the concert, but they made the ending feel complete. I was sad to leave the concert. I imagine I’ll be even more sad after the next concert. Still, I feel like this is by far the best virtual concert experience I’ve had over quarantine and I’m so grateful to have experienced it.
Don’t do anything fun until I get back!
Hallie
Oreos & Peanut Butter 