twice

jihyo <3

i really wanted to see twice last year but the timing was inconvenient (school weekend + got covid the previous week + was planning to fly for spring break so i couldn’t risk another positive test), so i’m super thankful that they decided on summer dates this time around. first let me just say that getting to metlife was an absolute logistical nightmare…like 1 bus + 3 connecting subways + 1 shuttle tacked on top of a 4 hour amtrak nightmare. the journey there was long and arduous FOR SURE. i also had trouble selling my extra ticket which stressed me out a bit, i don’t know how resellers do it…or people who buy tickets for the sole purpose of trading/selling them for better seats…i’d practically given up until the d-day because not a single person i reached out to could make it, and i’d been scared off resale sites by r/stubhub. but then roy dm’ed me 4 hours before the concert and everything miraculously worked out.

i ended up going to the concert with roy (almost met up with xihulu too but it didn’t work out TT). i think we had pretty good seats in the 100s middle section and i’d read up on seat reviews on reddit beforehand but i was still surprised by how far we were from the stage irl. at loonacon last year i could actually see the girls onstage…like i was knocked on my ass when they came out and i realized that they were Real and i could see their faces. this time i mostly relied on watching the screens and squinting at the stage to get a glimpse of jihyo’s arms.

speaking of the SCREENS…okay let me backtrack to the beginning. on the amtrak to nyc i read risa’s post and realized that i hadn’t done my due diligence re: setlist listening homework, so i blasted a spotify playlist on repeat for an hour. i was also nervous about them being tired/disengaged onstage because i’d built up such a crazed hype about seeing them in my head and a mid concert experience would’ve deflated that. twice are known to be PERFORMERS so it didn’t even occur to me to be worried. and anyway i didn’t even have time to freak out about this because i had to run so many errands in the heat before making my way to metlife. i was sweating so much that i considered copping a tour shirt to change into (which i was planning on getting anyway) before i learned that the t shirts were FIFTY DOLLARS and the hoodies were $75 are yew fucking kidding MEEEEEE. loona’s was $30…granted it was loona but still…i didn’t end up buying merch because it felt financially irresponsible at that time but like 2 hours later i was like damn why am i not waving a candybong rn.

i have to say that the concert did not start out with a bang. it was still bright out (around 8 pm) so there was minimal lighting, and the camerawork was kind of confusing for the first couple of stages…like for half of go hard they projected visualizers on screen instead of the performance and the girls were ANTS on the stage so that was a very #@$%@#$%^#$%^ moment 4 me. i wasn’t crazy about the ready to be album in the first place but obviously they were there for company mandated album promos. imo twice are at their best when they are sweet and colorful and earnest, and their not-best when they are fitted in beige and olive green. i’ve warmed up to set me free and moonlight sunrise but still…i think their best dark and mature concepts all have some element of theatricality to them: cry for me/perfect world/breakthrough/shot clock/icon >>>>> ALL PERFECT STADIUM SONGS…

the energy picked up during the first set of solos but the turning point was definitely feel special with the live band. it’d gotten dark enough by then for the lighting effects to come through and the live band was electrifying. and fireworks! feel special was when i truly started appreciating the outdoors set up despite the heat. the girls kept mentioning how hot it was and i was like lads i am sweating in my seat and you are singing&dancing nonstop. the live band charged the stadium with such an incredible energy, especially during the title track medley which i LOVED and got the whole thing on camera. they were so charming during the medley…it is funny to me though that they shelved scientist even though it was their 3rd last cb. the audience chanted every single word and danced and jopped and i was like fawkkkkkk IM AT A TWICE CONCERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i’d seen clips of most of the solos before so i knew what to expect but jeongyeon’s surprised me! the production/graphics were the best out of all of them imo…..the recorder bit was cute…..she was so fun to watch, you could tell she loved performing. last year with loona, pale blue dot was the song i hadn’t really paid attention to until they performed it live…this time it was crazy stupid love! the 3mix harmonies blew me away. misamo spoilers drove everyone crazy. i wish they’d done subunit stages (like the pink hello stage or born this way) but it was nice to see everyone shine during their solo stages, and it gave them more time to rest between performances.

earlier that day i’d hoped that they would close the concert with like ooh ahh and they did <3 debut song of ever <3 except they did one more encore…..everybody around us screamed for TT while i screamed for do it again and none of us got what we wanted because the wheel landed on fireworks…..fuck ass fireworks. nayeon i trusted you to rig it. LOA was the perfect encore to me anyway and i felt so lucky to see them perform the whole thing. debut songs should be mandated at every concert!!!!!!!!!!!!!

i mean what more is there to say. it was twice. of course i loved seeing them. i am a twicefan always <3 my ult of ults <3 jihyo <3 kind of surreal to see them as these industry giants when they were all younger than i am now when they started this. i wasn’t ready to commit that much money for a concert (although all in all i ended up paying less for the ticket than i did with loona) but now i know for sure that i should go for vip next time. the jihyo grip was real even from the 100s section…picture the sound of my brain being blown to bits at jihyo queen of hearts chorus.

next time…IOI reunion tour anyone?