By Jacob Pellegrino
I went into P1Harmony’s January 26th show having only heard a few of their songs and been to one kpop show before. When I got to the show, there was a long line to enter with tons of fans lined up, excited for the coming concert. Employees of the venue handed out photo cards of the band members on the way in, a nice touch to give concert-goers a physical souvenir beyond photos and videos. 713 Music Hall is a very open venue and the floor GA had a great view of the stage.
The show began with P1Harmony coming out onto an elevated platform on the stage with matching outfits after a video introduction. They began with the high energy track “Do It Like This,” performing with smooth choreography and strong group chemistry.
P1Harmony truly facilitated audience engagement with many breaks in the set to talk to the crowd and make sure that everyone was enjoying the show. This type of structure is common in kpop performances, but is not often seen to this extent in American concerts. Every few songs, the band talked directly to the audience, which made the show feel personal, even for people like me who had not followed the band in the past. The band’s chemistry and humor really showed through in these breaks.
One of the most energetic tracks of the night was “Back Down,” a song that I had been listening to before the show. It’s expression of confidence showcased the power of the group and got the crowd moving.
Another unique element of the show (as compared to American concerts), was the use of video interludes. Some of them were music videos, used during breaks, but the longest video was of the group playing a game that involved members being challenged to do different things like dances. The video had a very silly and campy tone that made for a fun and lighthearted break from the show.
The band also broke off into solo stages that showcased each member’s abilities. The highlight of the solo stage section for me was a unit of Soul, Keeho, and Jiung covering Michael Jackson’s “Love Never Felt So Good.” Beginning with a quick tribute to MJ’s style and dancing, the song exuded a confident and happy energy that enveloped the audience. There was also an interesting segment with two of the group’s members rapping over the beat for Kanye West’s song “Black Skinhead.”
Later in the show, P1Harmony played their, as of now, unreleased track “Secret Sauce,” debuting it for the audience. The song talks about the ingredients that make the band work well together and fuse them as a group.
At the end of the show, the band came back for encore and said goodbyes and thank yous to the audience, showing a deep thankfulness for the audience engagement throughout the concert and with their music and promising to return to Houston soon. As seems to be the norm for kpop groups, they returned to the stage wearing their tour merch, which no doubt inspired some audience members to purchase some for themselves. Even after their encore and goodbyes, P1Harmony came back and played more songs.
Although I did not know much of their music in advance of the show, P1Harmony was a great and energetic live act that kept my attention and enjoyment throughout their performance.
